Sister Complex
by Turtle00001
Summary: Kmeme Prompt-Shepard Siblings-ME3 Garrus Vakarian, like most of the crew, had no idea Commander John Shepard had a kid sister. And he certainly had no idea Jane'd be so... enticing. But John certainly isn't the first brother to have a protective streak
1. Chapter 1

AN: So, this story is based on a prompt from the mass effect kink meme regarding the Shepard Siblings. To break down the prompt:

John hadn't told anyone he had a sister. Jane some how comes to join the Normandy crew. Garrus instantly takes an interest.

Full prompt at: http:/ /masseffectkink .livejournal .com /4309 .html?thread =9312213#t9312213 (without the spaces)

Guess I should also add that most of this story is actually already written and posted at the kinkmeme. Just posting it here as I revise it.

Heads up, this will content mature content in later chapters, and I will adjust the warning accordingly. Also contains some Mshep/Tali, and minor Vega/Cortez

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 1_

* * *

"So, this is the Normandy" Lieutenant Jane Shepard muttered to her self as she gazed up at the holographic map of the ship in the center of the CIC. She'd been on one other stealth frigate during a mission in batarian space a few months back, and though it had been designed after the original Nomrandy SR-1, it had been nothing like this. No, this was a marvel of engineering and design, truly a beauty if she ever had seen one.

A few weeks back, she'd been recalled, along with numerous other units across the galaxy, to be stationed on Earth for an undefined amount of time. No one knew why, exactly, but there were rumors it had to do with the recent arrest of the famous Commander Shepard. She narrowed her eyes. iJohn.../i

She'd punched more than one FNGs for parroting the media's bias against her brother during the course of the past two years. She wasn't entirely sure what to believe, herself, but he had saved thousands of lives over the course of his career and he deserved their respect, dammit. Neither she, nor their mother, had heard anything from John since his miraculous reappearance months ago, but it was common knowledge now that he was alive and kicking, regardless of the tears shed at his funeral two years ago. Deep down in the little hole she kept her personal emotions in, she was hurt that he'd neglected to inform his own sister that he was alive. Dear big brother's face had an over due appointment with her fist...

Jane tore her eyes away from the holographic ship, and made her way up toward the cockpit. Regardless of her bitterness, she had jumped at the chance to volunteer to head up the security team posted aboard the ship as it was being retrofitted. Having a chance to be aboard the ship that her brother had commanded and loved so dearly... She'd gotten a few messages from him during his mission to catch the rogue spectre Saren, and he'd had nothing but good things to say about the ship and her crew. She would also have to admit that she took the position partly because she was bored out of her mind. She could only deal with so much time spent twiddling her thumbs before she went completely insane. She'd tried to visit her brother a few time, but getting through security was turning out to be a bitch. Upon reaching the cockpit, she greeted the pilot they'd escorted aboard earlier that morning.

"Moreau. I've heard you're quite the pilot."

"Among other things." He grinned cheekily, and she rolled her eyes, feeling a corner of her lips curl upwards. A moment later, he sighed melodramatically and added "But with all these retrofits and upgrades, I'm going to have to almost completely relearn my baby."

"She was quite impressive to begin with, I'm surpri-"

"Lieutenant Shepard!" She was interrupted by one of her marines who was jogging up toward her. He came to a halt and saluted her. "Lieutenant Shepard, you have a call from Alliance Command." She looked back to the pilot, who's eyes had gone wide suddenly as he mouthed her name silently. His eyes flicked to the N7 insignia on the chest of her hard suit, before returning to her face.

"Holy Shit."


	2. Chapter 2

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 2_

* * *

The metallic cry of the Reapers echoed in Kaidan's ears as ran down the hallways of the space port, Lieutenant Vega close on his heels. The ground shook as a near by explosion rocked the building, sending debris to shatter on the ground around them. The lights flickered, but he didn't stop as he rounded the corner and made for the hangers. Another explosion, closer this time, nearly knocked him off his feet, and he came to a screeching stop as a beam fell through the ceiling to crash into the floor in front of him. When the dust cleared, he saw various doors down the hall, each leading to different hangers.

"Which one is the Normandy's?" He asked as the tattooed man came to a stop behind him.

"Its the one on the end, but-" Vega was interrupted by the sound of gunfire, and they both vaulted over the fallen beam for cover. Two creatures were lurching after them down the hall, and they were both easily twice the size of husks and three times as hideous. "What the fuck are those?"

"I don't know, and I'm not sticking around to find out." Kaidan pulled out his pistol and returned fire, forcing the creatures to duck behind cover of their own. The two men took advantage of the lull in return fire and dashed through the door. He felt a strange pang as the Normandy come into view, but he decided that now was not the time to examine those particular feelings. The ground shook again, and near by men yelled as they worked fervently to finish loading the emergency supplies onto the ship. Just then, Kaidan's com sprung to life.

"_Major, do you read me_?" Anderson's voice crackled in his ear, and he sounded almost winded, as though he'd been running. "_I'm patching in Shepard._" Good, they were alive.

"We're almost to the Normandy." He turned and fired at the creatures again, killing one and slowing the other. "I've got Lieutenant Vega with me, but we're taking heavy fire." They were at the cargo bay door now, and Kaidan could hear a woman barking commands at the men who were loading the supplies onto the ship.

"_We're abo-zzzzst-minu-sszzt- out._"

"Admiral? I think you're breaking up. Do you read me?" This time he got nothing but static as he boarded the Normandy, and made right for the red headed woman who seemed to have taken charge. "I'm Major Kaidan Alenko. I need-"

"Get the rest of these idiots on board! We need to get out of here, _now!_" The woman barked, and Kaidan didn't pause to question her. The next few minutes were a flurry of activity as he hustled all of the near by workers onto the ship as more of those blue creatures poured into the hanger. Finally, the engines sprung to life, and the Normandy took to the air slowly. Soon, they were off toward the location of the Admiral's recently established distress beacon. They slowed as they reached the downed gunship, and Kaidan smiled as Commander John Shepard made the leap onto the cargo bay door, happier than he thought he'd be to be aboard the Normandy with him again. As the the ship took off again, leaving the Admiral behind as the door closed, Kaidan took John's hand in a firm hand shake.

"Shepard, glad to see you alive." Shepard looked tired, but Kaidan couldn't really blame him. Below them, Earth was burning.

"Yeah. More than I could say about a lot of people." He trailed off as he released Kaidan's hand. "Anderson said... He said that my sister might be on board. Do you know if she made it?" Kaidan froze, confused and more than a little disoriented.

"Your... sister, Sir?" The destruction below completely forgotten, an unbidden image of John in a dress came to him, and he immediately wished he could unsee it. "I... uh, didn't know you had a sister, Shepard."

"You didn't know he had a sister, eh?" Kaidan turned to the source of the voice. He'd completely forgotten about the red headed woman, and watched as she walked toward them at a slow but steady pace, her narrow waist and ample hips swaying, and her narrowed eyes never leaving John's. The clinking of her boots against the steel floor stopped as she came to a halt right in front of the Commander, her arms crossed in front of her chest, and her weight settling back onto one foot. John seemed... apprehensive, and it did nothing to ease Kaidan's own nerves. Before he could register she'd even moved, the woman's armored fist had collided with John's cheek, causing the larger man to stumble backwards with a pained grunt.

They stood there, Kaidan gaping like a fish, John rubbing his jaw, and the red head regaining her composure, her shoulders wilting just a bit. A moment later, she'd flung her arms around the Commander's neck, standing on her tip toes and pulling him into a hug. John wrapped his arms around the smaller woman and pulled her close.

"Why didn't you contact me, you fuckin' ass?" She muttered sourly, which caused John to chuckle lightly.

"Its good to see you too, Jane."


	3. Chapter 3

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 3_

* * *

John found himself starting to pace as he waited for Liara to finish breaking through the security terminal. The state of the research base on Mars was worse than they'd expected, but finding the asari doctor had been a unexpected blessing. They were pressed for time though, Cerberus getting closer and closer to their goal as the minutes passed.

"Shepard, why didn't you ever mention that you had a sister?" Kaidan's voice broke through the silence, and John turned to face his friend, a single eyebrow arching up in amusement.

"Lieutenant Jane Shepard, yes?" Liara chimed in, her eyes not leaving the terminal as her fingers flew across the keys. "Yes, I was surprised when I found her name in your files when I finally unsealed them. Was there a reason you never spoke much about yourself?"

"I've never been very good at mixing my personal life with my professional, as I'm sure you've noticed. It just never occurred to me that it was an important thing to mention." He shrugged, and he noticed that Kaidan had more on his mind.

"Were you two not close, or something?"

"No, we were incredibly close. Growing up as military brats, moving from ship to ship, usually all we had was each other. Mom was an officer, and Dad was an engineer, so between them we were moving every few years. We both enlisted when we were old enough, and we kept in touch pretty well, up until I died."

"You know," Kaidan had a considerate expression as he rubbed his chin, "I think I remember hearing about an incident years ago involving a Jane Shepard, but didn't make the connection. Had something to do with the raid on Torfan, I think."

"Yes, they called her the 'Butcher of Torfan'." Liara stated, and John nodded in confirmation. "Alliance brass thought the batarians were dug in too deeply, be she lead a team that infiltrated the main base, killing every single enemy including those that surrendered, at the price of more than half of her own squad. It was very controversial. There wasn't much press about it because of that, I believe."

"I suspect she insisted on being part of the mission on Torfan partially because she took what happened on what happened to me on Elysium personally. I got through it with only minor injuries, but she's always had a bit of a vindictive streak." John rolled his eyes slightly, remember plenty of examples of her retaliations as children. Most had landed both of them with a few bumps, bruises, and black eyes.

"She has quite an interesting service record actually. From what I remember, she enlisted at 18, two years after yourself, and though she lacks your own biotic ability, she proved to be a very capable sniper and infiltrator. Achieved N7 ranking much like yourself, achieved numerous awards and commendations, and has served as a Corsair for the past few years." John listened to her summary of his sister's professional life, and felt a wave of pride. Liara turned back to face him, a small amused smile gracing her lips. "I suspect the only thing keeping her from outranking you is her impressive disciplinary record. Has a tendency toward getting herself in a bit of trouble every now and again. Alliance keeps her away from the press after an incident or two where she assaulted a reporter during an interview." She stood up, and added that she was done hacking through security and that they could continue onward toward their goal.

"Yeah, I noticed her habit of talking with her fists." Kaidan chuckled, running a hand through his hair. "Geez, John, I still don't know what to think. The fearless leader, Commander Shepard has a beautiful, albeit lawless, kid sister. And is her hair color natural? Red heads are so rare these days." Seeing Kaidan's dreamy smile, John felt his eye twitch as he leveled the major with a deadpan glare. After a moment, he decided to keep his cool, and give his friend the benefit of the doubt.

"Well..." He started after a moment, "Our dad was part Irish. And if you ask me whether the carpets match the drapes, so help me god, I will make your face wish it was a pretty as Garrus'."


	4. Chapter 4

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 4_

* * *

John stepped through the door back into the waiting room of Huerta Memorial Hospital, and spotted Jane standing by one of the windows, her arms crossed as she looked out over the Presidium. He joined her, and they stood in silence for a moment, watching the cars fly past. He was reminded of a time, years ago, when they'd stood in a building similar to this, one of her tiny hands gripped in his, her other thumb stuck snugly in her mouth, and together they'd gaped at the simulated sky as they waited for their mother's meeting to be over.

"How is he?" John was jerked from the memory by her soft voice, and he looked over at her concerned face. He sighed, closed his eyes as he pictured his injured friend lying unconscious in a small room down the hall. He opened his eyes again.

"He's stable. Not doing well, but at least hes stable."

"He took quite a beating." They returned to the silence. Neither of them had ever been people of that many unnecessary words. "How'd the meeting with the council go?"

"Worse than I would have liked, but better than I expected." He'd always butted heads with the council, but he'd also always been as respectful as possible, and had sacrificed numerous lives to insure their survival. He'd be lying if he said he didn't think he deserved their help at this point. But of all of them, the turian councilor was probably the one he'd least expected to be willing to compromise. "We should head back to the Normandy and prepare to leave. We're heading to Palaven next."

"Palaven? What the hell for?" The confusion was clear in Jane's voice and she shot him a skeptical look, but he ignored it.

"There's going to be a war summit, and we need to insure the Primarch will be able to attend. He's currently stuck on their moon, Menae."

"How badly has Palaven been hit?"

"I don't know, but I suspect its bad if they need a stealth equipped ship in order to get him out of there." A moment later, he added "I... have a close friend on Palaven." He felt her hand as it came to rest on his shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. She'd never really been one for sentimentality, and small gestures from her such as these spoke volumes.

* * *

_AN: Feel free to review, they make me happy :)_


	5. Chapter 5

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 5_

* * *

"The com tower should be operational now! Try and call the General, see if its working!" Jane hollered down to him from her perch high above them. John was surprised how quickly she'd managed it, but then again she was her father's daughter.

"Get down here, find a safe place, and cover us. We've got husks incoming, 2 o'clock!" He switched his com on, and managed to alert General Corinthus that the com tower was operational again, but moments later they were neck deep in husks again.

"Crap!" James cursed as he attempted to pry a husk off his back. John tried to take aim, but getting a good shot at the flailing mass of limbs that was attached to his team mate was impossible if he didn't want to hit the human as well. A sharp _crack!_ echoed through the valley, and the husk fell to the ground, its head nothing more than a bloody stump. James shook what was left of the husk off of him, and grabbed up his shot gun from where it'd fallen out of his grip. "I fuckin' love you, Lola!" John could almost hear the grin in her silence as another _crack! _took out another husk.

"Who, exactly, is Lola?" John asked as he glared and tossed a biotic shockwave perhaps a few feet too close the other man.

"Whoa there! Careful with that thing, Loco. Just a nick name, that's all! I give 'em out to everyone."

"Nothing wrong with a little nick name, _Loco_." Her tone was all honey, with an after taste of mockery and needles that only a sister could manage. grunted by way of response. Jane and James had hit it off almost immediately after meeting aboard the Normandy, both having a similar crude sense of humor and an 'all or nothing' approach to life.

_I should have known having Jane aboard a ship full of men was a recipe for disaster..._

"Commander Shepard, come in!" The voice crackled through his com, interrupting his unhappy speculations.

"Go ahead."

"I have information from Palaven Command. Please return ASAP."

"On our way." He motioned for the other two to follow, and a moment later they were making their way back toward the base camp. They were insight of the barricade when a distinctly turian scream echoed back from the com tower behind them. Jane turned and moved into cover quickly. She aimed and fired off a shot before popping the heat sink and reloading. She quickly gestured at him to keep moving.

"You go on ahead, I'll be right behind you." John nodded to her and the two men made their way toward the General as shot after shot rang out.

* * *

There were two times prior to today that Garrus had been this happy to see John Shepard alive and well: When he'd crawled out from under the wreckage of Sovereign after the fight with Saren, and as he'd run across that bridge to his rescue on Omega. They stood there together, discussing the state of turian politics while the galaxy burned around them, and Garrus couldn't help but feel a guilty pleasure at the prospect of joining the Normandy's crew again. As he attempted to deny that that was a bad thing, he realized there was something wrong.

"Shepard, its not like you to be running around with so little support."

"Actually, we have-" A digital screech reverberated through the base, and all eyes snapped skyward.

"Incoming Harvesters, heading for the airfield!" James yelled out, and everyone watched as the creatures tore across the sky dropping Reaper spawn in its wake.

"Garrus, ready for a little action?" John asked as he pulled his shot gun from it's home on his back. "Let go take care of those while the General tracks down Victus."

"Sure thing, Commander." Moments later they were arriving in the airfield, facing down yet another horde of mechanical nightmares and abominations. The other two men charged forward into the thick of the action, but as usual, Garrus took up a safe point in the back from which he could pick off targets one by one. Settling behind a small barricade, he aimed, fired, reloaded, and repeated. Shot after shot, husks and marauders fell only to be replaced within moments by reinforcements. He went to discharge another heat sink when he sensed another combatant roll into cover behind the barricade next to him.

"What the situation?" If he hadn't be entirely focused on his aiming, he'd have done a double take upon realizing that the person next to him was a _human _woman, one that he didn't know. John's missing squad member, most likely. He took down another husk, and glanced over at his new companion as he reloaded.

"We're taking out as many of these things as we can while we wait for news about Primarch Victus."

"Sounds good." She muttered offhandedly as Garrus focused back on picking out another target from the swarms. He lined up the cross hairs, and was about to pull the trigger when the husk's head exploded. He looked back over at the woman next to him, who was busy reloading, and he smirked.

"Nice shot." He offered as he aimed again, and a moment later his target joined hers on the ground, reduced to a bloody mass of limbs.

"Not so bad, yourself." She returned a moment later. They continued on in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, and when he finally turned to look at her again, he was greeted with an empty space and the slight crackle that reminded him of Kasumi and her tactical cloak. Suddenly, he heard the mechanical purr of a marauder and looked up to see its beady blue eyes glancing down from where it loomed above him. Garrus flung himself to the side, but it was too late – it was too close, there was nothing he could do at it raised its weapon and-

A glowing orange blade erupted from its chest in a flurry of blue and black blood, and the creature froze, looking down at the leaking wound. It stayed there for a moment before the blade retracted and the marauder fell to the ground in a heap, gurgling and twitching. In its place, the armor-clad woman reappeared from thin air with a crackle, and she sheathed the omni-blade with a flick of her wrist. Her face and armor were splattered with speckled blue blood, and she smirked down at him with a slight curl of her lips.

"I believe you owe me a drink, or something." She raised an arm and attempted to wipe the blood from her face, only managing to smear it worse. Garrus felt his breath hitch, no words seemed appropriate. Their eyes snapped toward the marauder as it gurgled and moaned again, and the woman whipped out her pistol, landing three shots in its head, finishing it. She glanced back at him, and extended a hand, which he took, and she hauled him back to his feet. Once he was standing, she winked at him before taking off toward another barricade a ways off as she prepared her rifle for another round of slaughter. Garrus stood there for a second, probably looking like an idiot or a gaping fish, before he remembered he was in the middle of a battle ground and took cover again.

"Yeah... Or something."

* * *

AN: Thanks everyone for your kind words and encouragement! They make my day/week/month/year/life/whatever that much better!


	6. Chapter 6

AN: So, after this section, they start to get longer, on average. Still a few short ones, but they'll be more rare. Enjoy, and feel free to leave a review!

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 6_

* * *

It didn't take them overly long to take out the reaper forces on the airfield, and soon the last husk lay dead on the ground, it's head stomped in by the Commander's boot. Garrus stood up from his position behind the barrier, and collapsed his rifle to return it to its usual spot on his back as John and James made their way up to the ledge where he and the woman now stood.

"Good to see you didn't completely lose your edge during those months on Earth, Shepard." Garrus smirked at his old friend, who rolled his eyes and kept walking toward the main base. Garrus fell into step to his left, and noticed as the woman fell in at John's right. Apparently noticing Garrus' questioning gaze, he gestured between the two.

"This is Garrus Vakarian. Garrus, this is Jane Shepard, my younger sister." Garrus was proud that he didn't trip over his own feet, and managed to keep his face mostly neutral. Jane shifted her rifle to her other arm, and held out a hand, not missing a beat.

"Good to meet you, Vakarian. I've heard good things about you." He shook her hand, still feeling somewhat disoriented by the situation.

"Please, just call me Garrus. Wish I could say the same but about you, I had no idea Shepard had a sister." She shot her brother an annoyed glare, but it lacked any real hostility.

"Yeah, everyone seems to be saying that." John seemed to be studiously ignoring their conversation as they neared the guard station and headed toward the the main base of operations.

"Shepard, come in." Corinthus' voice sparked through their coms, and the elder Shepard responded with a curt 'Go ahead.' "Still trying to raise the Primarch. But we've got trouble here at the main barricade. If the Reapers breach it, we're done." Grim determination etched its way across John's face, and the squad picked up their pace.

"On my way." As they jogged through the base they could hear the yells and pained screams of desperate and dying men on the other side of the giant barricade at the other end of the base. With in moments they were ascending the ladder and taking up positions. Before them was a bloody and husk filled battle ground, the creatures crawling over the bodies of dead and dying turians as they made their way toward the cliff faces to either side.

"They're trying to climb up the sides. Keep them down until reinforcements arrive!" John yelled as he took up the mounted turret and showered the husks with bullets. Wave after wave, the husks poured down the valley, falling under the combined might of their firepower. As the last one fell, Garrus relaxed a bit, and wasn't the only one who took a moment to catch their breath.

"That wasn't so bad-" James started just as the ground started to shake. They looked down to see a giant behemoth barreling down towards them. It smashed into the barricade, causing the four to struggle to stay erect.

"Jane!" John hollered as Jane lost her footing and pitched over the side and down toward the waiting brute. The thing was monstrous, and as Jane struggled to push her self to her feet, it easily stood at two or three times her height. As Garrus, John, and James made their way down from the top of the barricade, the creature swung one massive arm out and it collided with Jane, smashing her back into the wall behind her with an audible _smack! _that made Garrus wince. He dashed toward the crumpled woman as the beast took a step back, preparing to smash her again with the entirety of its body weight. If he wasn't quick enough... He was almost there...

Garrus took a running leap, grabbing her around the waist and rolling them both out of the way of the charging brute. He pulled the disoriented red head behind an outcropping of rock as John and James distracted it with bursts from their shot guns. Jane brought a hand up to her head and groaned.

"God, I feel like the morning after shore leave." Garrus brought his hand up to feel the back of her head, and his fingers came away bloody. She grinned, through it looked somewhat pained. "Looks like I'm the one who owes you a drink, now."

"If we keep this up, we might as well make it a date." The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself. She barked out a single laugh before wincing and rolling her shoulder.

"I might hold you to that!"


	7. Chapter 7

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 7_

* * *

Jane tried to stretch her shoulder as she stepped off the elevator onto the crew deck. She was technically still on duty, but what John didn't know couldn't hurt him. In all likely hood, EDI could tattle on her, but she was betting on the AI being slightly preoccupied with her brand spankin' new body to notice her taking a small break. Not that she had much to do while John was having his little war summit upstairs. After the emergency take off from Earth, finding the right people for each job that needed doing had been difficult at best, and John had scratched his head a bit when it had came to her. In the end, it was decided that she'd help out Adams down in engineering until they could get their hands on some more experienced tech specialists. John stated he was trying to track down members from his old crew, but had thus far been unsuccessful.

She passed through the door into the crew's quarters, and flopped down on her bed, and instantly regretted it. Her head throbbed painful against her skull, a sore reminder of yesterday's mission on Menae. A second painful throb, and Jane sat up again. Maybe something to take the edge off, just a bit...

She exited the room again and soon she was striding into the mess hall where she stopped suddenly to see Garrus Vakarian sitting at one of the tables. He was avidly watching a vid on his omni tool, an open beer bottle sitting in front of him. She continued past him, and stuck her head in the fridge, searching around for a bottle for herself. She examined the label, and seeing that it was levo-amino based, she shot Garrus a confused look.

"Where on earth did you find a dextro beer?" His head shot up, and he swiveled to look at her in surprise, clearly having been oblivious to her until just then.

"I uh-" He watched as she plopped herself down in the seat across from him. He relaxed slightly, leaning back. "Well, rummage around in the lounge bar long enough and you can find just about anything." She took a look at his omni tool, and saw that he'd been watching news vids from Palaven.

"Any family still there?" She asked after a moment, and he turned off his omni-tool with a sigh.

"Yeah, a father and sister. Haven't heard from them yet." They shared a moment of silence, taking sips from their drinks slowly. Jane wasn't exactly a chatty person, and since finding herself thrown headfirst into her brother's world, she'd been stuck in one conversation after another with people who seemed unnaturally interested in her. Kaidan, before he'd gotten his face beaten in, had been an unending stream of conversations and questions, and Jane had found herself checking around corners to insure she didn't accidentally run into him. He'd been nice enough, but boy did he want to chat. Vega had been more to her liking, deciding to introduce himself with a friendly 'dance' that had ending in two bloody noses and a very annoyed Dr. Chakwas. Liara, though sweet and cheerful, had a very creepy habit of knowing more about herself than even she knew, and Jane got the feeling she was not the only person who felt that way. But Garrus- She wanted to get to know this turian. They'd had an interesting chemistry on the battlefield, which she was hoping might transition into their blossoming friendship.

"So-" She took another sip, "Tell me a little about yourself, Garrus." An emotion flickered across his face, and Jane cursed her inexperience with reading turians. After a moment, he replied.

"Well, I grew up on Palaven, joined the military at 15 like all turians, and served my required 15 years. It wasn't exactly my plan, but I ended up a C-Sec officer, which is where I worked for the three years prior to joining Shepard's crew on the Normandy." He paused suddenly, and she realized she was chuckling. "Whats so funny?"

"Oh, nothing. Nothing really. I just don't think I've ever had a friendly conversation with a C-Sec officer before. Usually the only interaction I have with them is when they're hauling my drunken ass out of a bar, usually after a brawl."

"Well, I've had to chuck plenty of drunk Alliance marines in the drunk tank in the past. Maybe you were one of them?" They shared a laugh, but after a moment he gained a... considerate expression? Or maybe it was confused? "So, how exactly should I differentiate between you and the Commander? I can call you both Shepard if you want, but..." He trailed off with a snort, and Jane grinned, understanding what he was getting at.

"Yeah, you're not the first to ask that. I'm used to going by Shepard, but I've been telling people here to just call me Jane. Or Lieutenant Shepard. Either way. You can call John 'Shepard' if you want, I don't really care." She shrugged and she nursed her beer for a moment. She glanced back at the turian, and realized she probably wasn't going to find a better time or person to answer the questions that'd been burning at her since she'd arrived on the Normandy. "Garrus, what can you tell me about my brother?"

"What do you mean?"

"He's not the same person I grew up with, and he shrugs off most of my attempts to get him to talk to me. What happened between when he disappeared and when he was arrested?" Garrus didn't say anything, just looked down at the drink held firmly in his taloned hands. Jane sighed, realizing that she'd sat forward almost agressivly, and forced herself to relax again. "Sorry, forget about it, I shouldn't have put you on the spot."

"No, its okay. Honestly, I don't really know what to tell you. He died, and Cerberus rebuilt him somehow. But you don't go through that completely unscathed. Hes still the same force for good, the same paragon of humanity. Hes just a little more closed off than he used to be, I think." She listened for god only knew how long as Garrus explained a wild story about a suicide mission against the Collector home world, a mission that they'd successfully all come back from alive. The respect and brotherly affection with which Garrus spoke about John was not lost on her, and she found herself eternally grateful that he'd had friends like Garrus watching his back.

"So, does my brother have a little lady friend?" Jane grinned, leaning back, her arms folded behind her head. Garrus snorted, almost choking on the sip he'd just been taking from his bottle, and coughed once or twice before rising an eye ridge at her. She knew 'amused' when she saw it, regardless of species.

"Well, I'm fairly sure he wouldn't appreciate me spreading rumors about his love life to his kid sister... I certainly wouldn't in his position." He hesitated for a moment, and she leaned forward, her elbows leaning on the table in front of her, her fingers laced.

"Come on, Garrus." She cooed, "What harm could telling me _possibly_ do?" Her grin grew, and he chuckled, his mandibles flaring out in something that almost looked like a grin as he crossed his arms across his chest.

"Well, as much as he tried to keep it under wraps... Nothing stays secret on this ship for very long. If you want any details, you'll have to ask Tali, herself."

"Who is-"

"Jane!" She sat bolt upright as her brother barked out her name, and turned her head to see him marching toward her, a disproving scowl marring his face. He stopped next to her, glaring down his nose.

"So, how'd the meeting g- Hey!" He'd plucked the beer bottle up from in front of her. "I wasn't done with that!" She protested as he walked over to the garbage shoot, tossing the nearly empty bottle down.

"You, Jane, are still on duty, or did you forget that?"

"Oh, come on John!" She stood up and followed him toward the kitchen. "There's virtually nothing to do right now. Adams will just have me redo the capacitors calibrations for the third time simply because he has nothing else for me to do." He stared at her, his arms crossed and tapped his foot.

"Jane..." The warning tone was that of The Commander, and she sighed, giving up. She gave him a messy salute.

"Yes sir." She muttered before turning around, and heading toward the elevator. Garrus was glancing up at her from where he still sat, and once again his expression was unreadable to her. Regardless, she quirked her lips up in a smirk as she paused next to him.

"Maybe we can finish this another time, Garrus." A moment later, she added in a whisper "By the way, this doesn't count as our 'date', just so you know." She set off toward the elevator, leaving the two men behind her.


	8. Chapter 8

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 8_

* * *

Jane was quickly coming to realize that trouble had a way of following John everywhere he went. Or maybe John was the one following trouble. Either way. Lately, it would appear, trouble went by the name of Cerberus. She'd encountered them plenty of times in the past during raids on bunkers and hidden research labs, and so she honestly couldn't say she was surprised by the level of their depravity. But the ease with which they'd started working in the open was disconcerting, and upsetting. First Sur'kesh, and now Grissom Academy. Where else were they attacking that they didn't yet know about?

Grissom Academy was a nasty piece of work. As they made their way through the station, they came across dozens of bodies, some of students probably not even out of their teens yet. They'd done their best to stop the Cerberus operatives, but even so, some managed to make off with captured students before anything could be done to stop them. Jane could see how each death effected her brother, the lines and bags around his eyes becoming more pronounced with each body they found. _ Mourn the dead later, John. Stay strong so that you can protect the living._ They were lucky that they made it to Orion Hall as soon as they did. A few minutes later, and there would have been a half dozen more dead students, and apparently an old friend's as well.

"Okay," John started as Jane finished hacking into the door controls, "Garrus, Liara, with me. We're going to clear out the atrium below and insure the shuttle port is cleared. Jane, Jack, you two take the students through the second level, hit them from above."

"Sounds good, that will keep the students from direct fire. Where will we meet up?" Jane pulled out her rifle, checking the heat sink as she moved over toward the waiting teens.

"According to Sanders, its not far to the shuttle ports. There's a room where we will converge just outside there, and we'll meet there. Keep me posted." She nodded, and motioned toward the students and their teacher to follow her as she made her way up the stairs.

"Okay, kids. Time your shots, stay safe, and follow my orders, and we'll get you out of here safely, got it?" There was a murmur from the students as Jane ushered them through the door toward the upper level of the Atrium below. She was about to follow them when Jack paused in front of her.

"Look, I don't know who you think you are, but I don't give a shit who's sister you are." She hissed, shoving Jane backwards into the wall. "I didn't spend the last 6 months training these kids so that you could get them killed now. I don't trust you, and I'm not following your piss poor orders, got that?" She spat, and Jane narrowed her eyes in cold fury.

"Okay, _Jack_," Jane sneered, lowering her voice to just above a whisper, "You can either listen to me or not, but your answer decides whether or not your students make it out of this alive. Take a moment to think about it, but be warned: _I'm not known for my patience._" She jabbed the tattooed woman in the chest with a finger, pushing her back. "Now, get the fuck out of my way." Jack opened her mouth to retaliate, her eyes aflame with rage, but Jane took the chance to move away, striding down the hall to where the students waited.

"Wait just a-" The sound of gunfire echoed down the halls, cutting Jack off.

"Everyone, weapons out, be on guard. Lets go!" Jane took off at a brisk pace, and a moment later the rest followed after, albeit somewhat reluctantly. When they encountered enemies, she was happy to see that they at least had some idea of what to do in a fire fight, though it was obvious that any experience they had was from sim drills or vids. Luckily they didn't encounter much more than cannon fodder and snipers, which all went down quickly enough. She was surprised by the sheer power of the kids, some even managing to push multiple enemies over the railing to fall to their deaths below.

"Jane? Status." Her brother's voice came through her com, and she raised two fingers to her ear, activating it.

"We've almost cleared the Atrium. ETA 6 minutes." Three more well placed shots, and all the enemies were neutralized, and she lead them through to the next room, which had two doors. According to the map John had forwarded her, they were to take the door on the right, which was locked. Apparently it was more secure and it filtered out into the room where they were to meet with the other team. Within in a moment she had the door open, and she turned to wave the students through, but froze when she saw Jack hurrying them through the other door. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"Listen, Princess, I don't take orders from you, and I know this station better than you. This way will get us there faster." Jane clenched her fist and struggled to keep the snarl out of her voice and she ran after them.

"John's directions clearly state that surveillance indicates this passage may have been compromised."

"Stuff it, Princess. I don't give a f-... I don't care what you have to say." Jack flipped her off as she continued down the hall, and Jane ran a furious hand through her hair in an attempt to keep her calm. The students watched nervously as Jane grabbed their instructor's shoulder roughly and forced her to turn to face her. Jack slapped her hand away roughly, hissing "Keep your hands off me!"

"Look," Jane rubbed her temples, forcing her blood pressure to slow and considered how John would have handled this situation, "I understand you don't know me, and don't trust me, but its not about that. What this comes down to is whether or not you trust the Commander, because these are his orders, not mine." That gave the biotic pause, and she turned to face Jane, her face pensive.

"Uh, we've got a problem..." One of the students exclaimed, and the two women turned to look at the speaker. He was inspecting the door at the end of the hall way, which appeared to be damaged, the control display red and flickering. "Looks like we've gotta head back." The student finished, and Jane raised an eyebrow at Jack. But as they turned to start heading back, they were all nearly knocked off their feet as the room rocked with an explosion. They were pelted with debris, and when the smoke started to clear, they saw a handful Cerberus operatives pouring in from the new hole in the wall, blocking them in against the damaged door.

"Crap!" Jack spat, quickly erecting a biotic barrier around them as the bullets starts flying, and Jane flung herself behind a crate, pulling a student along with her. Between the few places of good cover and alternating biotic barriers, they would be able to hold off the onslaught for a little while, but not long.

"Come in John!" She yelled after activating her com unit. "We're pinned down under heavy fire. Need back up ASAP. Won't last long at this rate." There was a moment of silence on the other end, and Jane quickly leaned around her cover, fired off a shot, dropping an engineer trying to set up a turret. She snapped back to safety, shots just barely missing her. "John, do you read me?"

"Yeah, Garrus is on his way to your location now. Liara and I are securing the shuttle port and will join you as soon as we're done."

"Rodger that." Seconds creeped by slowly as they all did their best to return fire, dodging bullets and hoping to god for a miracle. There had to be a way out of this, but with the relentless attack she could barely move. She surveyed the students, and saw that they were holding up, though not for long. Jack was doing her best to coach them, but they both knew it was only a matter of time. Jane took a chance to peek over her crate just in time to here the beep of a turret activating, and she glanced over at the girl currently holding up the barrier closest to her. The girl, Rodriguez, was panting, her chest heaving, and looked as though she were going to collapse any moment. The moment that turret started firing, the girl was done for.

"No-!" Jane flung herself at the girl just as she heard the vibration of the turret firing up and saw a flicker of failing biotics. "Jack!" She screamed for the other woman to take over the shield, but she was already on it, extending her own barrier to include the students that had been under Rodriguez's protection. Jane shifted her weight when she heard the girl groan, and she saw the fresh blood of a gun shot leaking between Rodriguez's fingers where she clutched her arm. As Jane moved, though, she felt a stab of pain in her own thigh, and cursed again as she rolled off the girl in an attempt to apply pressure to the puncture in her leg armor.

"Ugh, I'm not paid enough for this..." She groaned, eliciting a small, pained chuckle from the girl. Then, just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, she looked up to see an Atlas mech crash through the gaping hole in the wall.

"Fuckin' Cerberus!" Jack screamed, and Jane decided that she would probably never agree more with the other woman than she did right now.


	9. Chapter 9

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 9_

* * *

Garrus barreled down the empty hallways at what had to be the fastest he'd run in awhile. He only encountered one lone Cerberus operative, who went down quick enough with a few bursts from his assault rifle. He heard the commotion before he saw it, and positioned himself just out of sight behind the Cerberus troops firing at the students.

"Jane, whats your status?"

"I'm hit, but not badly. We've got one other wounded, and everyone is exhausted and reaching their limits."

"Okay, I'm just behind them. I can't get to you, but I can probably pick off a handful of them before they know I'm here."

"Do it. Focus the engineers." She stated simply, and he didn't waste any time. The moment the last engineer was down, he watched as she poked her head over a crate further down the hall, her omni-tool active and gesturing at the only active turret. Just as it turned to face him, it fizzled and came to a halt, seemingly hesitating. "_Now!_" She screamed, and apparently she'd been giving out directions to the students because all of them unleashed biotic attacks in a single moment, directly at the giant Atlas. They collided right into it's windshield, and there was a thump and a sharp crack as it shattered into thousands of shards, littering the floor. "Garrus, cover me!" He didn't question her, just lifted his sniper rifle up and took out as many of the combatants as he could as she rolled over the top of the crate and hit the ground running.

Within seconds she was wrestling the pilot out of the mech, and taking his place at the controls. It didn't take much after that to wipe the floor with the remaining Cerberus forces. Garrus got up from his place by the door and trotted over to take a glance into the cockpit of the Atlas, and she turned to face him with a small but tired grin.

"Good timing, Vakarian. Now gather up Jack's little gaggle of ducklings so I can try something. The mech's sensors show reinforcements coming from behind, so we've got no choice but to move forward."

"Sure thing." He made his way over to where the students were catching their breath, and helped the one bleeding girl to her feet. "Here, this will help a bit." He applied some medi-gel to the wound, and a moment later he was gathering them all behind the mech, which was aiming it's rocket at the door. He winced, realizing what she had planned. "You sure you know what you're doing with that thing, Lieutenant?"

"Eh," She scoffed slightly as she aimed, "I'll figure it out." A moment later, a single rocket smashed into the door, punching a large dent in it and knocking one of the doors in far enough that they could all slip through. "Jack, start heading to the shuttles, I'll be right behind you." Jack started hustling the students through it, and looked back to Jane with a curt nod of her head, before following. Garrus, unsure if he should follow or not, turned to Jane, who was struggling to pull herself out of the cockpit.

He reached up to give her a hand, just in time to catch her as her injured leg gave out, pitching her forward into his chest. He slowly set her back down, allowing her time to get her feet under herself, and once she was stable, she patted his shoulder once. He grinned back as her, before she took a step and stumbled. He leaned over, looping his arm under hers, giving her something to lean on as together they hobbled past the door and toward the shuttle port.

"Jane! What happened?" John exclaimed as they entered the hanger, and he hurried over to them, but she held out a hand to fend him off.

"Lets just get on board, you can fuss over me later, John." She shrugged off Garrus' arm, and limped over to an empty seat on the shuttle.

"I don't fuss." If Garrus didn't know better, he'd almost think John was about to pout, but then his thoughts were interrupted by an explosion. The Commander hurried over to the other shuttle, which was already loaded down by Jack and her students, and yelled for them to go. Moments later, they were all aboard their own shuttle, and making their way to the Normandy.

Garrus settled into his seat, and found his eyes drifting toward the woman across from him, her head leaning back, her eyes closed, and her hand resting carefully over her injured leg. Watching her in action was becoming one of his favorite part of missions, these days. She was just as deadly a weapon as her brother, and surprisingly just as good at quick thinking on her feet as well. He couldn't help but wonder how much of it was nature, and how much of it was nurture. He knew their mother was a rear admiral, so was she just as astounding? More?

He noticed, suddenly, that she'd cracked one of her eyes open just slightly, and was watching him as well. He jerked his head to the side and glanced out the window, deciding that the less he dwelled on the human woman, the better. _Easier said than done._

* * *

A few hours later, Jane was allowed to leave the med bay, and she did so enthusiastically although with a slight limp. She grabbed a towel from the crew quarters, and was about to head into the bathroom for a shower when someone called out to her.

"Hey! Princess!" She froze, and turned to face Jack with a wary expression. She didn't think that the other woman had the gall to attack her aboard the Normandy, but it didn't hurt to be prepared.

"Whats up?" She asked hesitantly, holding her ground as the biotic strode meaningfully in her direction. Jack stopped in front of her, close enough to connect with a punch, but far enough so as not to cause unnecessary discomfort (for which Jane was pleased)

"Look, I..." Jane's eyebrows rose as Jack seemed to stumble over her words, her eyes flicking down the the floor as she put her hands on her hips. "I think we got off on a bad foot. Or whatever." Jane remained motionless, watching to see if perhaps it was a test, or a joke. "I'm not good at this apologizing thing, okay? I'm sorry I doubted you, if I'd listened, maybe we wouldn't have almost gotten killed." The words were out of Jack's mouth in a torrent, and she crossed her arms, refusing to make eye contact. But Jane's lips crooked up into a smile regardless.

"Its okay, we all got out mostly alive. Plus, life's no fun if you're not occasionally getting shot at." A smirked cracked across Jack's face and she finally met Jane's eyes, sticking out a single hand. Jane took it, and they shook firmly.

"You're okay, Princess. We're going to be transferring to an Alliance station soon, but maybe if we get a chance at some point, you and me can go get a couple of drinks and cause a scene or something." Jane laughed, starting back toward the showers.

"I look forward to it, Jack."

* * *

The Normandy's night cycle had started hours ago, but John had yet to be able to sleep. After the day they'd just had, he would be surprised if anyone was sleeping well. He'd insured the genophage was cured, watched a friend willingly sacrifice himself for the krogans, and possibly made a life long enemy of the entire salarian race. All in a days work for Commander Shepard, it would seem. He knew he had done the right thing, and would do it again in a heart beat, but watching Mordin die... That'd been hard.

If he was wrong though, and the krogan were in fact a threat to the galaxy in the future- he really shouldn't be thinking about that right now. Right now the threat was the Reapers. Whatever came after them would be preferable to complete annihilation.

Somehow, Jane had known about the Dalatrass' offer before they'd even left the Normandy. Honestly, he wasn't completely surprised, seeing as how she'd spent half their childhood with her ear up against a door, picking up tidbits of information that she wasn't supposed to have. He supposed that desire to be where she wasn't supposed to and hear what she wasn't supposed to was what made her such a valuable infiltrator, but damn if it wasn't annoying as hell. At least he had EDI to insure she wasn't poking her nose around in his personal files and reading his messages... or he hoped she wasn't. A life time of dealing with her teasing regarding his love life (or often, lack there of) had instilled a strong desire to insure his own privacy. Not to mention, he had no idea how to break it to his sister that he was technically a xenophilliac now... He really wasn't sure what her reaction would be.

He lifted his arm up, activating his omni-tool, and pulled up Tali's latest message. It'd been short, as all of the messages he'd gotten from her were, but at least he was able to communicate with her now, unlike during his 6 months on Earth. She couldn't tell him what was going on, though, and that worried him. They were more just notifications that she was still alive, really, some times with hints of something big happening. It made him nervous, and it was a struggle to ignore the fears worming their way through him and keep going on with his mission.

At least he had other small things to keep him busy during his off hours, like keeping what felt like his entire crew _out_ of Jane's pants. Just yesterday he'd caught Traynor, of all people, ogling his sister's behind as she'd made her way through the CIC. He turned off his omni-tool, rolled over, and buried his face into a pillow. Jane would probably have a few choice words for him if she knew he'd already given a few crew members harsh words for trying to chase her tail, but he had good reasons, even if she refused to see that. It was his job to keep her safe, after all, whether she liked it or not.

* * *

AN: Thank you to everyone who's been reviewing! I'm trying to send responses to all of them, but I'm quickly learning how difficult it is to keep track of it all... Sit tight and I'll get back to you all in due time :) Your reviews really help spur me on, and motivation is everything, so I really want to make sure you all know how much I love you 3


	10. Chapter 10

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 10_

* * *

Jane's cloth wrapped fist plowed into the punching bag as she bounced on the balls of her feet. She wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead, and then sent a fist flying toward the swinging bag once more. She'd been at this for close to an hour, and still she felt like she'd go crazy if she sat still for longer than 5 minutes. She should have been asleep hours ago, but Tuchanka had shaken just about everybody, including her. So when she'd been unable to fall sleep, she'd donned a pair of shorts, a sports bra, and a tank top, and made her way down to the gym. She'd been spending more and more time down here as of late, though never so late at night. Her usual way of dealing with post mission stress usually included ingesting copious amounts of alcohol and waking up in someone else's bed. But she was quickly discovering that when aboard your brother's ship, you weren't allowed to have fun.

However, she knew exactly how much pressure and responsibility was being placed on John, and if dealing with his over protectiveness would placate him and make his day a little easier, then she was willing to put up with it. More than anything, she was frustrated that there was so little she could do to help shoulder his burdens. He'd always been a good hearted boy growing up, and later on the Alliance's golden boy, always doing the right thing even when it was hard and painful. She loved him for it. And envied him. She'd always taken the quickest and easiest paths to victory, which had always worked for her, but he always took the _right_ path. For example, their debate after the Dalatrass had suggested that compromise. Jane had over heard their conversation and had later suggested he take the deal, but John, good and just John, had disagreed vehemently, stating all the reasons for which the krogan deserved their trust.

"Hey." She nearly jumped out of her skin, and turned, ready to slug who ever it was standing behind her. She relaxed slightly when she saw that it was Garrus, leaning back against the weapon consoles. "Couldn't sleep?"

"Something like that. And you? Do you grace the cargo bay with your presence at 2am often?"

"I'm known to, on occasion. Turians run on a shorter sleep schedule than humans. Since I've been a little... wound up lately, I've generally been coming down here to work out my stress." He'd shed the heavy armor he usually wore, and instead he had on a loose set of dark civvies that were most likely his sleep wear. He looked smaller, but not any less intimidating. She grinned, shifting her weight to one side, jutting her hip out, and crossed her arms.

"You certainly do seem to be carrying some tension... Maybe I could help you get rid of it." She stretched her arms up over her head, and his jaw slackened slightly, his eyes widening. She brought her hands back down, and started flexing her wrists and fingers, eliciting a series of small pops.

"Ooh, you mean like a sparing match?" Realization dawned across his face, and she couldn't help but chuckle.

"Unless you have a better idea?"

"No, I- Uh, not exactly." Jane turned and walked toward the middle of the large room, and watched as he pushed off from the console, but didn't take a step forward. "I'm not really sure whether its a good idea though. One of us doesn't have natural armoring." She scoffed and raised an eyebrow.

"What, never sparred with a human before? You'd be surprised how tough we are, even if we look a little squishy."

"No, I've sparred with a human before, but never a completely unarmored one." He remained completely still, but Jane was nothing if not persistent.

"Ah, I get it. You're worried that this 5'5" human female is going to mop the floor with you. Yeah, I suppose I'd be scared too, in your position." That seemed to do it, because an instant later he was striding toward her, rolling a kink out of his neck.

"Oh, you're on." As he came closer, Jane realized that he was perhaps more intimidating without his armor than with. He was thin, but his body was all lean muscle and hard, sharp plates. He moved with a feline like grace, completely inhuman. He was the epitome of an apex predator, and she felt a small surprising pang of fear bubbling in her core, along with something else that she wasn't quite ready to admit to.

* * *

Garrus lifted a forearm to block an incoming punch, and struck out with his own fist, hoping to catch her before she had time to react. But, not unlike most of his attempts, his fist flew through the space where she'd been only moments before. It was like she was made of water, flowing around him, almost impossible to land a proper hit on. He'd gotten her good a few times, but her speed and flexibility without her armor had surprised him. God, if she could move like this during a fight, imagine what she could do while-

He shook his head, and refocused on the incoming kick just in time to dodge out of the way. He wanted to believe that it was simply the heat and frenzy of the fight that was making his mind drift in _that _particular direction, but if he were honest with himself, he'd admit that it'd gotten incrementally more difficult to keep his mind off of her since their impromptu introduction on Menae weeks ago. She'd stood there, the embodiment of confidence, little blue droplets of blood splattered across her face, her shining green eyes alight with amusement as they landed on him...

The air was knocked out of him as he nearly doubled over from the powerful jab to his midsection, and he tried to swing out at her while she was close, but she darted away again. _Focus... _It wasn't necessarily that she was incredibly strong, but on top of her damned speed, she seemed to know almost all of his vital soft and weak points.

Ah. Right. Alliance Special Forces. Probably had all sorts of turian physiology courses...

He wasn't sure how long they'd been at it, but at this point he was positive he was going to feel it in the morning. She certainly was. She was favoring the leg with the recently healed gunshot wound, and had a small smudge of blood on her lip, thanks to an upper cut he was particularly proud of. A few bruises were starting to show themselves on her forearms (and a nice one on her cheek bone as well), and she was damned lucky she'd wrapped her fists, else she'd probably have to add bloody knuckles to the list. And the only reason he wasn't eaten away by guilt was that smug smirk never left her face, and the pain from the numerous hits she'd dealt him.

She danced from foot to foot, and with a wrist she wiped at her bloody lip, causing it smear, bringing his mind right back to when she'd stood over him on Menar, the blue blood smears streaked across her face in some sort of exotic impersonation of turian facial tattoos. She wouldn't have made a very good turian, she was far to unpredictable. But for some reason, that only made her more appealing...

Jane struck out, her fist coming toward his soft belly again, but this time he saw it coming and grabbed her wrist just before she could make contact. He reacted instinctively, whipped her around and up against a near by shipping crate. Her back was to him, and she struggled to turn her head so that she could watch him as he twisted her arm behind her back. She tried to grab at him, to dislodge the hold he had on her with her free arm, which he promptly grabbed and pinned above her head. They were both breathing heavily now, her struggles squashed as he applied more pressure.

His fingers tightened, his talons coming dangerously close to breaking through her silky soft, delicate human skin. Spirits, he could smell her now that she was up close, the distinct smell of sweat and medi-gel and Alliance regulation soap. The scent was an odd mix of familiar and strange, having spent most of the past 6 years around humans, and yet never having bothered to pay attention before now. He looked down at the gentle curve of her neck and shoulder, so unlike what he was used to, and taut muscles underneath. _Spirits, what the hell am I doing? _

He looked up and met her eyes, which were watching him not with fear or confusion, but an intent expression he couldn't quite identify. "Huh." They stayed like that for a moment, their breathing starting to return to normal before he released her.

"Your point." She stated evenly as she turned to face him, rubbing one of her wrists. He noticed a few small, red pin points dotting her flesh, and winced.

"Sorry about that."

"No worries. Me and the medi-gel dispenser are good friends." Her smirk was back, and though while that was relieving, it did nothing to ease the roiling knot of emotions in his gut. Silence sprung up like a particularly insistent weed, and Garrus shifted his eyes away, lifting a hand to rub at the back of his neck nervously. Not only was she human (and he did _not _have a human fetish), but she was John's little sister. John was his best friend, his commander, and the biggest damned hero in the galaxy. Feeling these... whatever sort of feelings they were- for this small human woman was insane. Absolutely insane.

"I uh- I should get going. I've still got some... work that I need to get done on the cannons." He muttered lamely as he turned toward the elevator. Her hand shot out and caught his arm, holding him in place.

"This was fun." Her smile lost its usual snarky undertone, and he felt the roiling knot wiggle a little. "We should do it again some time." He chuckled, sticking his hands in his pockets to keep them from doing anything stupid.

"So long as you don't tell your brother that those bruises are my handy work."

"Deal.


	11. Chapter 11

AN: Thank you for all the support you've shown me the past few days! Helps get me through the work day when I keep getting awesome reviews in the mail! :3

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 11_

* * *

"Extranet says you're Alliance Military. Take care of yourself out there, Officer."

Jane stared at the holographic image of her older brother with a mixture of mortification and gleeful delight. It was an amusing distraction after the past few days of chaos, no thanks to Cerberus and their attack on the Citadel. She knew, as his younger sister, that it was her sworn duty to bring this his attention in the most embarrassing way possible, but she knew now was not the time, seeing as how he had just been at the bedside of a dying friend and former crew mate.

"Got any pets? You look like a varren person."

She brought a fist up to her mouth to hold in a giggle that threatened to overwhelm her, and she glanced around at the turian refugees. Not one seemed to notice or give a damn, so she returned her attention to the computerized John Shepard.

"Anyone ever tell you you're one hell of a looker, Soldier?"

"As deeply disturbing it is to hear him say that about his _sister_, it doesn't really mean its not true." She spun around to see none other than Garrus Vakarian walking toward her with most of his usual swagger. True to their word, they'd continued their clandestine sparring matches a few times a week, though it'd never gone as... far as it had the first time, even if there usually was some (mostly) harmless flirting now and then. But they found a measure of release of stress and easy camaraderie that they both needed, and she was surprised how much she looked forward to their sessions together. She'd had some training regarding turian culture in her N classes, but in the end they'd always had a focus on military and politics, and she'd definitely never had a lesson on what to do if you found yourself oddly attracted to one.

Garrus stopped in front of her, and glanced around, his mandibles drooping slightly as his posture lost some of its confidence. "I-er..." He stumbled over his words, "Sorry, I'm not entirely sure how humans generally give compliments. I mean, your hair looks, uh, good. And you waist is... very supportive." His voice was closer to a whisper now, mindful of possible on lookers, which made the entire situation even more ridiculous, and oddly endearing. He must have seen some evidence of her amusement on her face, because he started rubbing the back of his neck again (which she'd learned was a human gesture he'd picked up for when he was uncomfortable), and sighed. "Crap, that all sounded a lot better in my head." She chuckled placed a hand on her hip as she raised an eyebrow.

"Ha, well, consider me seduced, smooth talker." He seemed to perk up a bit, and some of his confidence returned. A little, at least.

"Look, I... Well, I know we've all been busy for the past few days, and no one's really been able to enjoy shore leave what with the aftermath of..." He gestured to the damage and injured around them, "Anyway, I was thinking we might finally get around to that date I promised you. - If you still want to, that is." A surprising jolt of excitement coursed through her.

"Hell yeah. What did you have planned?"

"Well, I thought we might go somewhere we're not supposed to." She grinned at that.

"Now you're talkin'."

* * *

"Whoa." Jane leaned over the edge just far enough to see the sparkling water far below them. She stepped back to a safer distance and Garrus paused next to her.

"Be careful," He started, his voice only half teasing, "Falling to your death on the Presidium during a date seems like an anti-climatic way to go, after everything we've been through. Not to mention, your brother would kill me."

"Don't remind me. But geez, its beautiful up here. I'd never really thought about it before."

"I used to, back when I worked for C-Sec. Always wanted to do this." They stood there for awhile, just enjoying the sight together as the wind lightly buffeted them and the fake sunlight warmed their faces. Jane's hair danced around her face, and she struggled to keep it tucked behind her ears. She glanced at Garrus, and found him smiling contentedly. Who would have thought that a turian would have such a sentimental side.

"This is nice, but I hope you have something more planned than staring at cars and clouds." He jerked out of whatever sort of trance he was in, and looked surprised.

"Oh! Yeah, of course." He walked back to where the car was parked, grabbing something from the back seat. When he turned around, she couldn't help but laugh out loud as she saw him holding a picnic basket and two sniper rifles. While the weapons would have seemed out of place on a date between any two other people, it seemed nothing but perfect for the two of them. He lifted the basket, and handed it to her, which she took hesitantly. "I wasn't really sure what to get for you, but the store keeper claimed that I couldn't go wrong with those." She took a peak, and along with whatever his lunch was, there sat a turkey sandwich, a chocolate bar, and a soda.

"In comparison to Normandy's food, this will be heaven." She replied, and he looked pleased.

"First though..." She put down the basket and he handed her one of the rifles.

And that was how Jane found herself neck in neck in a sniping contest with the Normandy's other expert sharpshooter. So far, neither of them had missed a single bottle, and they were going to start running out soon. But neither of them seemed willing to give up. She wasn't above fighting dirty though, and had a plan which included an adventurous hand during his next shot. But next it was her turn, and she lifted her rifle as Garrus readied his next throw. Taking a deep breath, she was the embodiment of calm. His arm snapped forward, and the bottle went sailing through the air.

"Nothing more sexy than a woman with a sniper rifle." The offhanded comment was just surprising enough to disrupt her breathing as she took her shot and the bottle plummeted toward the ground, unharmed.

"Fuck!" She cured, sending him a glare which was spoiled slightly by the smile she was unable to prevent. Apparently he wasn't above playing dirty either, because he flung his arms in the air in a victory pose.

"I'm Garrus Vakarian and this is my favorite place on the Citadel!" The random exclamation made her laugh, though mostly in amused confusion. He noticed, and added "Long story, you should ask your brother about it some time."

"That was cheap, by the way. And you're a turian. You probably don't even know what sexy is in regard to humans." He shrugged, packing away the empty wrappers from the lunch they'd nibbled at during their contest, a turian grin clear on his face.

"That's besides the point." He stood up, taking the rifle from her and returning everything to the car. "So, I remember a wager being made when we started this thing, and the loser was going to buy the drinks?


	12. Chapter 12

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 12_

* * *

The Citadel's 'night cycle', if you could call it that, had started some time before they made it down to Purgatory. The bar had already been bustling by the time they arrived, and were fairly lucky to find a couch to call their own for the night. The first thing Jane did was acquire two strong drinks, one levo and one dextro, and that set the pace for the rest of the evening. By the time Joker and EDI showed up, Jane was well and truly drunk, and she suspected Garrus was as well, if not on his way to being so. She never had one specific type of drunken personality, and tonight she couldn't stop giggling (and somewhere in the back of her head was a voice that was completely mortified by this).

"Well, you two certainly look... cozy." The pilot and the AI stood next to their table, looking down at them, one with a shit-eating grin, the other with a thoughtful expression. For the first time since... probably her third drink- Jane dedicated some small amount of brain power to how they might look to onlookers. She was curled up on the couch with her legs tucked underneath her, and inches away sat Garrus, leaning back with his ankles crossed and his arms draped across the back of the couch. In one hand he nursed his colorful drink, his other arm lay just behind her, occasionally playing with a lock of her hair. They weren't attached by the hip, but only just barely. She tried to cover another giggle with a cough and failed horribly. She hadn't started out nearly sitting in his lap, but apparently she'd gotten closer with each drink.

"Don't you have someone else to bother, Joker?" Garrus inquired with minimal sarcasm. Jane didn't know how alcohol effected turian speech, seeing as how everything she heard from them was filtered through her translator, but the flanging of his voice was deeper and much more noticeable after a few drinks, and it was driving her absolutely crazy.

"What, are we interrupting your little date? If scuttlebutt is anything to go by, you should just count yourself lucky that I'm not John." Jane shifted to face the couple as they joined them on the couch, Joker's grin becoming even more self satisfied.

"Hey now, our date was just a friendly one, nothing illicit going on here." Jane tried to crack a smile, but she suspected it came out a little more smug than intended.

"Yeah, I spent the entire time showing off my considerable aim and reflexes." Garrus drawled, and Joker's jaw dropped, causing Garrus' eyes to widen in understanding. "Wait... That just went somewhere horrible." Jane burst into laughter and smacked the turian's shoulder, and he chuckled softly.

"Wow. I don't think I've ever seen you drunk, Garrus. As nice as it is to see you without that stick up your ass, I honestly think I might need bleach to get that image out of my mind."

"Jeff, the application of bleach to any orifice is inadvisable, and could cause serious complications to your health." EDI piped up, causing a bark of laughter from the turian as Joker turned to pat EDI on the shoulder.

"And with that, I'm going to need another drink. I'll be right back." Jane stood, and started toward the bar again.

"Grab me another while you're up?" She nodded, and with great concentration made her way up to the bar without stumbling too badly, regardless of the way the ground was undulating. As she leaned against the bar top, she ordered the same two drinks she'd been getting all evening, not to the surprise of the bartender.

"Jane, fancy seeing you here." She turned at the sound of her name, and found herself face to face with Kaidan Alenko, their newest crew member. "Can I buy you a drink?"

"Major. Uh, er, no, actually, I ordered my drinks already."

"No problem, I can cover them for you." He continued to insist, and she glanced over his shoulder to where Garrus and Joker were laughing about something without her.

"Ugh, sure, do whatever you want." His face brighten, and when the bartender came over with her two drinks, Kaidan passed him his credit chit without saying a word. Jane made to grab the two drinks, but Kaidan took them before she had the chance.

"Here, let me carry those for you. So where are you sitting?" He then actually looked at what he was holding, and took a sniff from the brightly colored dextro liquor. "This smells really odd. What is it? Mind if I take a sip?"

"I wouldn't if I were you." She raised an eyebrow at him, and as he started to lift it to his lips she grabbed both drinks from him. "Seriously, its a turian drink. You won't like it." She gestured behind him to where Garrus sat, and Kaidan's eye widened in understanding.

"Are you... here with him?"

"In a manner of speaking."

"Oh. I see..." Jane saw his face fall, and she sighed in defeat. Drama was _not_ how she intended to spend this buzz.

"Look, we made a friendly wager, and I lost, so I'm stuck footing tonight's bill."

"So you're not... _together_?"

"No, we're not 'together'," She noticed Garrus watching them now, and though he was well out of earshot, she could tell he was concerned about whatever was holding her up. "Now, if you'll excuse me..." She tried to dodge around him, but Kaidan put up an arm to stop her.

"Well, I was thinking... Maybe you and I could go grab some dinner or something? I know this place-"

"Kaidan. You better not be doing what I think you're doing." Both soldiers turned to see John standing beside them, his face hard and arms crossed. Jane turned back to the Major, who swallow nervously.

"Oh, uh, no Sir. Of course not, I was just-"

"Yeah, I didn't think so." The Commander's voice was barely contained fury, and he wrapped an arm around Kaidan's shoulder in a distinctly threatening manner. The Major instantly looked extremely uncomfortable. "Since you seem to want 'dinner', you can come back to the Normandy with me and we can grab dinner there, got it?" He turned, guiding the other man toward the club's exit. John paused, glancing back at Jane, giving her a stern look. "Don't stay out too late, Jane. We're leaving tomorrow morning and you should get your rest."

"Sure, _Mom_." John rolled his eyes before dragging Kaidan long with him. She made her way back to their table, and handed Garrus his drink before settling back into her seat. He took a long swig of the drink before tracing a small pattern on her shoulder lightly with one talon.

"So what was all that about?" He asked with what might have been a very carefully neutral voice, if not for the alcohol in his system.

"Ah, nothing," She took a sip of her drink and savored the burn of it in her throat, "Just John being his usual, over protective self. So, where were we?" She grinned as she leaned closer, running a finger along the cowl of his armor, eliciting what almost sounded like a purr from deep in his throat. She heard an exaggerated gag from where Joker and EDI sat behind her.

"Uh, hello? We're right here."

"I believe the correct human slang for this situation would be 'Get a room'."


	13. Chapter 13

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 13_

* * *

It was well past midnight by the time Garrus made his way back to the Normandy, Jane tucked up against him and unable to finish a full sentence without falling into a case of the giggles. His own drunken haze had melted away to a warm buzz, but as the airlock opened and they stepped into the low lighting of the Normandy's night cycle, he started to come back to himself more quickly. With each step came more clarity, until they stood before the elevator of the CIC, one of her hands gripped in his, her other hand tracing patterns across the armor covering his waist, and he swallowed.

"-then we can test that flaunted reach of yours, and you can see my flexibility up close and personal." She was saying, and though it came as no surprise what she had in mind, he felt his belly drop out from under him. What, exactly, was he thinking? This was exactly what he'd been trying to avoid for spirits knew how long, for reasons he repeated through his head every time those sharp green eyes landed on him with that devilish half smile. Just like the one she was wearing now... He leaned in, pulling her closer...

And a moment later logic kicked in and he pushed her away, his hands gripping her shoulders to hold her at arms length. Her eyes shot open, understandably confused, and she opened her mouth to question him.

"Jane, I- This isn't... I really shouldn't. And I'm sure you could find something a lot closer to home..." The door opened, and Garrus took the chance to quickly disengage and dart in, pushing the button for 'Crew Deck' and 'Close Door' as quickly as he could. "I'm sorry..." He ended lamely, and she stood there, her mouth still open, but saying nothing as the door closed between them. The elevator hummed as it made its way down, and he banged his head against the door, incredibly annoyed with himself. _Figures, nothing ever goes right for you._

The door opened, and he stepped out, turning right to beeline right to the Main Battery, where he would hole up feeling sorry for himself. He took a step into the mess hall, however, and spotted a very angry John sitting at the table across from a very abashed looking Kaidan. Cursing, Garrus back peddled as fast as he could. He spied the door to the lounge, and decided that was as good a place for self pity as anywhere else, and it wasn't until he was slouching on one of the slightly uncomfortable human couches that he realized that, being human, John lacked the ability to smell his sister all over Garrus.

He really didn't quite understand his attraction to Jane Shepard. He didn't... _definitely did not_... have a human fetish. Of that, he was positive. But species aside, she was the embodiment of everything he could ever desire. She was brave, strong, intelligent, charming, dangerous, and brutally efficient. She was like a warrior spirit on the battle field, the image of her standing above him, covered in her enemies blood was forever burned into him.

No, he didn't have a human fetish, but he was definitely 'human curious' when it came to her. When he was around her, he found himself noticing things about the human form that he'd never noticed before. The gentle curve of her lower back, the small hairs on her eyelids (were they called eyelashes?), the dexterity of her five fingered hands, the small spots that were speckled across the paleness of her face...

He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and rubbed his eyes in frustration. No thanks to all their flirting, it had gotten harder and harder to keep it to himself, regardless of her station of 'protected little sister of the Commander'. He'd taken a chance today with their date, thinking he'd be able to control himself if they just had a little carefree fun, but it'd spun wildly out of control when alcohol had be introduced into the equation. Up until tonight he'd managed to convince himself that Jane would have no interest in being with a turian, but all night she'd been all over him, nearly in his lap. She'd made her interest very clear, though he was fairly positive that'd been the liquor talking. Either way, John was clearly willing to maim anyone that touched his sister (which was something he'd have to ask him about. It had to be a weird human thing), and in all seriousness, Jane deserved better than some failed rebel turian turned vigilante.

"_You._" He looked up into the face of Jane Shepard, her rage barely contained as she stood in front of him. In his angst, he'd completely missed the opening of the door and the entry of the furious woman. "I'm not sure what you thought was going happen when you left me standing there. Did you think I was going to take it sitting down like some fuckin' pussy?" She leaned forward, grabbing the collar of his armor, pulling his face up toward her's. "I. Don't. Think. So. We've be playing this little game for awhile now, and I'm not going home empty handed." She pushed him back against the couch, "I know you want this just as much as I do..." Next thing he knew, she was straddling his lap and he instinctively grabbed hold of her hips, and her resulting grin was almost predatory. He didn't trust himself to speak just yet. "That's what I thought. And if you try to get away from me again, I'll be back, and I'll bring C-Sec issued handcuffs. We'll see how far you get then." He let loose a strangled chuckle, which died the instant he felt her hand upon his scarred cheek. It was such a simple gesture, and honestly he couldn't feel that much due to the damaged flesh, but her face had relaxed in to the most soft, thoughtful expression he'd seen from her yet. Her cupping the embodiment of his all his flaws in her hand, accepting them... it was just enough to break him, even if the symbolism was all in his head.

"Jane..." He leaned forward, brushing his forehead against hers. They stayed like that for a moment before she broke the silence again.

"If your reluctance is because of some misplaced threat from John, then please don't let that come between whatever...this-" With her free hand she gestured between them, "-is. But if the whole interspecies thing is seriously a problem for you... I'll understand. Regardless of what I said before, I don't want to pressure you."

"You don't have to worry about making me feel uncomfortable. Nervous, yes... But never uncomfortable." Her smile was soft, but her eyes were intense, giving him a slight shiver of anticipation.

"Good. Now, I've never been with a turian before, but I'm well enough acquainted with your biology that I should be able to figure this out. I usually do." He pulled her closer as he chuckled again.

"Looks like this will be a learning experience for both of us."

"Then lets start with lesson number one." She leaned forward, pressing her soft lips against his harder

ones. Kissing, as he knew it to be called, wasn't something turians generally did, though many other races tended to. He'd never understood the appeal, but then her tongue trailed along the edge of his upper lip, he gasped. She took the chance to dart in, her tongue brushing against his own rougher one and he reciprocated in turn, one of his hands snaking into her hair, pulling her closer. He loved the feel of her hair, it was so damned exotic... She pulled away slowly and he was proud that he didn't whine in disappointment. "You're a quick learner."

"It helps that my teacher is so-" His breath hitched as she leaned down, running her tongue along the underside of his unscarred mandible, "-skilled." She chuckled, her hands becoming more adventurous. As they brushed against the side of his fringe his hips bucked and her eyebrows rose in interest, and she made a small 'ah ha!' noise. She did it again, running her hand along the underside this time, and he ripped his gloves off in a frenzy before slipping them underneath her loose shirt, desperate to feel her skin against his own. "I'll be a bit more careful with the talons this time."

"If you treat me like I'm made of paper, I'm going to be very disappointed." Her voice had dropped every so slightly in a playful and alluring manner. Spirits she was going to be the death of him... But then his eyes snapped open.

"We're not going to run into any sort of problem with chirality, are we?" Wouldn't it be great if their little affair was found out when one of them dropped dead in some sort of freak biological accident? But she scoffed, raising an eyebrow.

"I highly doubt it. I'm not really sure it works that way. At the very least, I had a... good time with a quarian on his pilgrimage years ago. Definitely didn't have any issues then." Regardless of the casualness of their current relationship, Garrus felt a stab of unreasonable jealousy for this nameless male and he felt his nails dig into her flesh possessively. Jane seemed to have anticipated this reaction because she looked far too smug for his liking. He flipped them and she landed on the couch on her back with a small squeal. He kept her pinned beneath himself and knotted his fingers in her hair again, rolling her head to the side to expose the curve of her neck. He ran his tongue across the silky skin from her clavicle up to her ear, drawing out a breathy moan from the human that gave him a heady rush. His lower armor was starting to feel a size or two too small, and somewhere in the back of his mind he felt a relief that his body was reacting to her. On top of that, he could smell a distinct musky scent coming from her that was completely new to him, and he that he was having a similar effect on her, which was extremely satisfying. She was breathing heavily now, and chuckled before muttering "Oh, no you don't..." She took hold of his chest piece and looped a foot behind one of his knees, jerking him to the side.

"Wha-" He pitched over the edge of the couch, crashing to the floor and she was on him in an instant, straddling him again. Jane placed one hand on his chest, holding him down as she slipped her other thumb under the hem of her own shirt, lifting it up slowly up and over her head, discarding it on the table nearby. She wore nothing from the waist up except for a black, lacy thing covering the mounds he believed were called 'breasts'. Garrus'd spent enough time in places like Chora's Den and Afterlife that he had some small idea of what to do with them. He ran a hand up her side and cupped one in his hand gently, and was rewarded with a surprised gasp and she shuddered slightly. A moment later her hands flew to the latches on his chest armor and her lips were against his again and-

The door flew open and their eyes snapped to the two figures standing there, silhouetted by the lights behind them. For one horrifying moment Garrus thought one of the men was John, but neither of the men stumbling through the door seemed to notice the tangle of human and turian limbs on the floor. Garrus' eyes widened as he realized that whoever they were, they were locked in a close embrace, their lips in a feverish battle for dominance. They lurched to the side as one of them grabbed at the other's shirt, and as they moved further into the room, the door closed behind them.

Neither Jane nor Garrus moved as Steve Cortez looked up, breaking away from James Vega as he noticed the room's other occupants.

"Boys." Jane said by way of greeting, slowly standing up and grabbing her shirt. Garrus stood up as well, and decided it would be best not to say anything.

"Lieutenant Shepard. Officer Vakarian." Cortez nodded to both of them, and even in the dark lighting Garrus could see that his face was flushed red in embarrassment. Jane donned her shirt again, and Vega's jaw dropped as he started to comprehend the situation they'd stumbled in on.

"Lola! I... This isn't what it looks like." She raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms with a smirk.

"Are you sure? Because I'm pretty sure-"

"Hey now, chica, you've got _no _room to talk. Ay dios mio, after all those talks I've had to sit through with your brother telling me to keep my hands off?" He laughed and directed his grin to Garrus. "Geez Scars, you are in so much shit."

"As far as I remember, nothing out of the ordinary happened here tonight, _if you catch my drift_." Jane's back was straight and even at her modest 5'5" she seemed to stare down at the other occupants of the room.

"Loud and clear." Cortez stated as he placed a hand on Vega's shoulder, directing him toward the door. He stopped just before the door opened, glancing back with a small smile. "I'll make sure he doesn't go around blabbing to anyone, Lieutenant."

"Oh come on, Esteban, have a little faith-" Their voices muffled as the door shut, and Garrus found himself alone with Jane again. She looked back to him, and they both couldn't help the laughter that over came them at the ridiculousness of the situation. He got the feeling he wasn't the only one who had thought for a split moment that their intruders had been her brother. She glanced down at her omni-tool, and here eyes widened.

"Shit. Its really late. I think we're going to need to pick this up at a later date..." He sighed and took her hand, pulling her into a tight hug.

"Fine, but don't make me wait too long. Its cruel to give me a small taste and expect me to wait patiently..." She lifted onto her toes and placed a feather light kiss upon his lips before leaning her forehead against his.

"Wouldn't dream of it." With that, she turned around and left, heading for her bunk in the crew quarters. He sighed again, flopped down onto the couch. Once again, he wondered what he was getting himself into. He needed another drink...


	14. Chapter 14

AN: Sorry that this chapter is a little short(er than some), but I promise that tomorrow's update will be much longer. Also, be sure to read the note at the end, its got an important question.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 14_

* * *

Garrus' shift was crawling by, minute by minute, second by second, but it felt like time was standing still for all he noticed. After the events of the night before, he'd gone back to the Main Battery and, obviously being unable to fall asleep, had promptly pulled up the extranet and done various searches on humans, in particular their biology and sexual practices. It had been... educational.

And now, of course, he couldn't get the images out of his head. The idea of her writhing beneath him, gasping and moaning his name, the smell of her arousal and sweat... Spirits, how was he supposed to make it to the end of his shift? He leaned forward onto his console, resting his forehead in his hands. He closed his eyes and her green ones, half lidded in pleasure, gazed back at him and he groaned. He could feel his plates shift, just from the thought of her. He looked up when he heard the door open behind him.

"You have no idea how badly I-" Turning around, he froze as he recognized the _other _resident Shepard. He swallowed and nodded to his friend and CO. "Commander."

"Got time to talk, Garrus?" After a curt nod, John came over to stand next to him, and it might have been Garrus' imagination, but he looked particularly tense. Did he know already? He shifted his lower armor a little, very happy he wasn't in his civvies.

"Of course, Shepard. Is something wrong?"

"We should talk, I think. I know I've been somewhat distant lately, and I apologize. Everything's been... a little overwhelming." John's shoulders seemed slumped, but he was clearly trying to keep up appearances.

"You know we're all here for you, Shepard, for whatever you need." John smiled at that, though it looked somewhat forced.

"I know. That has to do with why I'm here, actually." He turned to face Garrus, all seriousness again. "I heard about your outing with Jane yesterday." And there it was. A block of ice landed in Garrus' stomach and started burning through him like acid. He swallowed and shifted his eyes to the side, rubbing the back of his neck.

"About that... I-"

"I really appreciate you hanging out with her. Ever since my death and meeting up with her again on Earth, I've been having an issue reaching out and spending time with her, and I'm glad I have a friend like you that can keep an eye on her when I can't." Garrus' eyes widened, not sure if he understood what he was hearing. Did he _not _actually know what had happened?

"Excuse me?"

"You and she went shooting, right? I don't know if I think target practice on the Presidium was exactly a smart idea, but it sounds exactly like the kind of activity she tends to enjoy." Garrus just stared at his friend as he continued. "I hope shes not angry at me about the whole over protectiveness thing, but its an old habit from when we were younger, you know what I mean? Mom and Dad always impressed on me how important it was to keep her safe, and she used to get into so much trouble, especially with the worst scum bags in high school. But she's 31 years old and not only an adult, but a very accomplished solider." His smile was back, and full of bitterness now, and Garrus felt a horrible pang of guilt. "I know I don't need to protect her from anything, and even though I know no one here would intentionally hurt her, emotionally or physically, old habits die hard." He took a deep breath, and unknowingly drove the guilt in further by adding "Anyway, its good to know I have at least one friend whom I can trust not to go messing around with her. Helps me relax, and god knows I need some of that." He chuckled and Garrus felt like dropping dead on the spot. He was, officially, the worst friend in the galaxy.

"Shepard, there's something I should probably tell-" John slapped the turian's shoulder, chuckling.

"I should go. I've distracted you enough with my yammering, and I've got a few more stops to make before lunch. We should reach the delegation from the Migrant Fleet by this evening, so be ready." Garrus sighed, noticing the Commander perk up at the mention of the quarians, and nodded. John patted his shoulder again before leaving Garrus to his self loathing. The absolute _worst_ friend.

After a few more minutes of trying to get some work done, Garrus gave up. He went over to his personal effects, grabbed up his bottle of soap (his was generally a bit rougher than the stuff humans seemed to use), and left the Main Battery. Maybe after a cold shower he might be able to focus a bit on the work at hand. Handling this situation with the Shepard siblings was something that called for a clear head, and no thanks to Jane, his head had been anything but clear for some time now. He entered the men's room, and as soon as he heard the click of the doors closing, he popped the seals on his chest armor. He eased the heavy armor pieces to the floor, pulled off his undershirt, and was adding his gloves to the pile when the door opened.

"I thought that was your spiky ass I saw slinking in here..." Because his morning couldn't be any less under his control, there stood Jane, leaning against the door frame and feigning interest in her finger nails with her half smirk.

* * *

_AN: So, the next chapter is very Mature rated, and I want to know if any of you want me to change this story to M rating, or would you rather I keep it as is, and just put a warning on the next chapter's note? Its up to you all, so let me know what you think. Thanks!_

_AN2: Okay, so after getting a few responses already, I'd like to make something clear: I've already written the chapter, and it IS M rated. I just want to know if you think I should change the rating of the entire story to reflect this. I'm not really sure about the etiquette is regarding this, since I've seen it done a few ways. Thanks again all! :P_


	15. Chapter 15

AN: Please note, this chapter is rated M! It has mature content, so feel free to skip it if that makes you uncomfortable. Also, the majority of you that reviewed wanted me to change the rating of the story to M, and so that's what I shall be doing now! Enjoy!

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 15_

* * *

Somewhere in the background, Garrus vaguely registered the cool voice of EDI as she mentioned that the women's restroom was on the other side of the ship. Jane ignored the voice as she looked up at him, and he felt the oddest combination of dread and anticipation as she pushed off the wall and started toward him. She stopped just in front of him, bringing up a finger to trace along the edge of one of the plates of his exposed chest. The conversation with John still fresh in his mind, he kept his hands to himself, and she raised an eyebrow.

"Whats wrong? Here I was thinking you'd be excited to see me..." Her fingers trailed lower, brushing along the sensitive hide of his waist. It was almost too much.

"You have no idea." He growled softly as he took her other hand in his and leaning down to nuzzle her cheek lightly, causing her to hum happily. He pulled away hesitantly, adding "But your brother's trust.- I can't just go behind his back like this." She sighed and reached up to run a finger lightly across his scarred mandible.

"I thought we were past this... I love my brother, I really do. But this is my decision, not his, even if he is the CO of the Normandy. And I know what the Alliance's rules are about fraternization, but last I checked, you not a member of the Alliance. And if I had a credit for every time _that _rule has been broken by soldiers over the years, I could probably retire somewhere tropical by now. If you're worried about John's trust in you, then we can tell him about... whatever this is, and hope he understands. But right now-" Her voice was husky, and her fingers, which had returned to his waist, dug into the softer flesh there, causing him to groan. Shit, she'd done research as well, apparently. "-You're going to stop worrying, and fuck me."

A split second later she yelped in surprise as he grabbed her around the middle, hoisting her up to sit upon the sink, and he held her close as she hooked her legs around his waist. His talons curled into her hips and pulled her closer as a grin broke across his face and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Yes Ma'am." Her lips crashed into his and their tongues met in a feverish battle for dominance that neither seemed willing to lose. One of his hands slid up her side, dragging the hem of her Alliance issued uniform shirt with it, and her own hand found the sensitive spot at the base of his fringe, causing his subvocals to vibrate with pleasure. They broke away for air and he used that as a chance to pull the shirt over her head and fling it across the room to hit the wall and slide to the floor. She reached behind herself and undid the clasp of her bra and moments later it joined the shirt. He took a moment to appreciate the sight of her, and even though she was harder than the human models he'd seen, covered in the scars of countless battles, and incredibly human and foreign... She was here, with him, and as she leaned toward him and their breaths mingled, she was impossibly beautiful.

"Ah, hold on..." She pulled away and glanced down at her omni-tool, and a few keystrokes later, he heard a _ding_ and the access panel for the door flashed red as it locked. "A little privacy. EDI can unlock it if she wants, but I'm hoping she'll give us a few minutes of privacy..." She looked up and winked in the direction of the strategically placed camera.

Garrus had spent a good chunk of time last night, as he'd laid in bed completely sleeplessly, imagining exactly how this would go down. They hadn't been in the men's restroom, it had not been proceeded by an admission of undeserved trust from her brother, and he'd been perfectly classy and suave. But somehow the moment seemed to take on a life of its own, completely out of his control much like how life seemed to be lately. He reached up and ran the pad of his thumb over a bright pink nipple in the same instant that she took the tip of one of his mandibles into her mouth. Lack of control, right now, was just fine with him.

His hands flicked down to undo the latch of Jane's pants, unzipping them to allow access. Thanking his foresight to dull his claws, he snaked one hand down her front, passed the oddity that other species called 'underwear', and felt the damp warmth of her core. She spread her legs slightly, giving him better access as she moved her mouth to play against the softer hide of his neck. He ran a single finger along her slit, slightly parting her folds, and she shivered as he passed over a small nub of flesh. He did it again, enjoying the soft mewling noise he got from her in reaction. She arched into him with a gasp as he plunged a finger into her depths, marveling at the similarities and differences in the feel of her. She wasn't as warm as a turian, but she was silky smooth and tight, and as he slid in another finger he felt her stretch to accommodate him.

Reassured that humans were as pliable and elastic as it was rumored, he kicked it up a notch as she rode his thrusts with delight, her moans slowly picking up in intensity. His thumb found that bundle of nerves and rubbed a circle around it, causing Jane to buck against his hand with a gasp and whisper what sounded suspiciously like his own name. Grinning, he continued as her fingernails bit into his shoulders and she shuddered involuntarily as her legs pulled him closer. She was becoming exponentially more moist as she got closer to her climax, and the thought of burying himself in her caused him to become almost fully emerged, his plates having long since parted.

She came then with a strangled cry, and he almost jumped in surprise as she clenched around his fingers with startling force. Not just once, apparently, but multiple times as she shuddered with the aftereffects of her high. He retracted his fingers as she looked up at him, panting but with a small, satisfied smile on her lips.

"Now that- That was something I wasn't expecting- From a turian." Jane muttered between breaths as she flexed her fingers in imitation of his talons.

"I guess I'm just that good." Garrus glanced down at his own fingers which were slick and sticky. He reached down to wipe them off, but her hand caught his, bringing his fingers up to her face. She opened her mouth and curled her soft pink tongue around one of his fingers, her eyes never leaving his. He focused on not letting his jaw hang open in blatant awe as she took the finger in her mouth, sucking on it lightly as her tongue continued it's adventure along his talon. With a light tug of his hand, she removed the finger with a soft _pop! _and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't left wondering what else that tongue of hers could do. Somehow, he thought that might have been the point...

Garrus looked down as she placed a hand on his chest, and stumbled backwards a few steps when she shoved him suddenly. She pushed back off the sink and soon after her feet met the ground. Before she was even in front of him again he was fiddling with the latches on his remaining armor. She pushed him back again and this time he stopped when he hit the back wall of the shower stall. Her hands quickly went to help him with the latches, and soon after he stood naked before her, and he found himself slightly nervous. What if she didn't like what she saw? She had said she'd never been with a turian before, hadn't she?

But not even moment later, she took his cock in her hand and he had to brace himself against the wall as she gave him a light squeeze. She knelt down in front of him and gave him a quick pump with her odd five fingered hand before extending her tongue to circle around the head. He let loose a short hiss, and she looked up with a eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked shakily, assuming he knew what her intentions were. He knew about the practice from its reputation, but having never slept with a non-turian before now... Well, turian teeth made the act somewhat dangerous, and was generally discouraged.

"Trust me. I don't think I'm the only one in for a surprise today." She took the head in her mouth and he was not disappointed in the least.

"Spirits-" It took all his remaining control to not thrust forward as she worked her magic, her tongue much more dexterous than he'd initially imagined. It wasn't long at all before could feel the telltale tightening. His arm shot out to the side, grabbing on to the first thing he could find in order to keep his balance as he found his release. A split second later Jane shrieked and his eyes shot open as they both met with the unpleasant sensation of an overly cold spray of water. He looked over to his hand, which had accidentally brushed the shower controls, and then back to Jane, who was starting to laugh as she got to her feet. She was soaking wet, still wearing her unzipped pants and boots, and she scrubbed at her face which was a mess of stray strands of hair and his own seed. She turned her face into the oncoming water, scrubbing her cheek clean before he grabbed her and spun to pin her against the wall.

"I think you have an unfair advantage here..." He muttered as he eyed her remaining clothing, and he slid his fingers along her sides, down to cup the swell of her behind, dragging her soaking pants with him. It didn't take him long to peel her out of the last of her clothes, and she was left wearing nothing but her dog tags and omni-tool. Grabbing her again, he lifted her up against the wall and she wrapped her legs around his waist again. He leaned forward to nuzzle her neck and felt her gasp as he brushed himself up against her slick opening.

"You're ready to go again already?" She asked with a breathy voice, which was followed by a pleasured groan as he rubbed his length against her.

"Not sure I understand. Human male thing, maybe?"

"Its just-ah!" She gasped as he did it again, "-nevermind! notcomplainingjustgo!" She whined, and though his translator stumbled as it tried to make sense of it, he got the general gist. He shifted forward and felt the tip of his cock start to part her lips. He took her, inch by inch, and her maddeningly tight hole stretched in welcome. He took a moment to steady himself before thrusting all the way in to the hilt, eliciting a sharp in take of breath from Jane. She muttered something as he held her there for a moment, but it came out as gibberish.

Garrus pulled back slowly, and watched with amusement as the woman in his arms reacted to his every movement. Humans certainly were expressive creatures. He kept the pace slow for a few more moments to give her enough time to adjust before plunging into her in a quick, sharp thrust. She cried out and tighten her hold around his neck. The water raining down on them was heating up quickly, and he clung to his minimal control with everything he could, determined not to finish in the first few minutes. It felt better than he ever could have anticipated, and with a chuckle, he hoped that wasn't a bad sign for his sexuality. Then again, as he thrust into her pliant,velvety body again, he was having a hard time caring.

Her cries and moans were escalating into throaty screams and he picked up the tempo and speed, desperate to see her finish. The edges of his vision were beginning to narrow, and his knees were starting to feel weak, but a moment later he felt her begin to coil like a spring, her nails digging into his hide. His world exploded as she came with a wail, her sex clamping down on his own throbbing one, causing him to groan and bury his face in her shoulder. He felt his shoulders start to relax after his climaxed, his partner milking him for everything he was worth. They stayed there like that for a few moments, him still buried in her to the hilt as they caught their breath. Their eyes met and they both chuckled softly before she pulled him down into a deep kiss. Garrus let her down as they broke away and he steadied her as she wobbled for a moment.

"Well." She whispered, the water was still running, pleasantly warm now, and he traced a rivulet as it trailed down her chest, between the swell of her breasts, and he took one of her hands in his.

"Yeah." He answered, and she grinned as she leaned forward to brush her forehead against his. "Since we're here, we might as well get clean." It wasn't a long shower, but they spent most of it simply chatting about small and almost meaninglessly trivial things. But some of the small things about her were the most interesting. Looking at her, you never could have guessed that growing up she'd had an entire wall of her bedroom devoted to model ships, of all things. Given, Alliance family barracks weren't very large apparently, and she'd shared a room with John for most of her childhood, but it was still impressive.

Garrus didn't really understand where their relationship stood, especially with John's opinion on the matter being what it was, and he wasn't even entirely sure if her feelings for him extended past 'fuck buddy'. But he was glad to have some semblance of peace and comfort during this nightmare of a war, and he tried hard not to dwell on what he'd do when when the war was done. She probably wasn't interested in anything serious, not with a turian at least, so the less he got attached to the idea, the less it would hurt, probably. Jane shut off the water and strode over to her scattered clothes, and picked up her sopping wet pants with a grimace.

"Good thing my bunk isn't far off. I doubt anyone will notice if I dash down there in these. In a few minutes I'll be in a dry uniform and no one will ever be the wiser." She was dressed before he was half finished, seeing as he still had heavy armor. She turned to help him, but he caught her hand and pressed his own lips to hers in mimicry of a chaste kiss.

"Go get changed, don't worry about me. Unlike you, I'm not breaking any protocol by being in the men's room." She smirked, gave him another quick kiss and trailed her fingers down his chest before making her way to the door. With a tap of her omni-tool, the door flickered green and sprang open to reveal a very disgruntled looking Joker. His eyes widened and snapped down to her soaking attire before flicking over her shoulder to land on Garrus.

"Really? In the bathroom? No wonder EDI wouldn't unlock the door for me. I thought you two were just friendly, not-" He made a lewd gesture with a few fingers that hinted at intercourse. He then flung his hands up in the air in defeat. "You know what? I don't even want to know. Just get out of my way before I piss myself." Joker pushed past Jane, who was trying her very best not to crack up in fits of laughter.

"Why didn't you just knock if you had to go so badly?" She asked, still standing in the door way.

"I did! If I knocked any louder, I probably would have nothing but a broken arm to show for it!" giving up, Jane gave Garrus an apologetic smile and a small wave before letting the door shut, leaving him trapped with the discontented pilot. He remained completely silent as the other man did his business, opting to simply continue donning his armor.

"Does John know you're fucking his sister?" Garrus winced, and finished pulling on his gloves as he turned to face Joker, who was now at the sink, washing his hands.

"Not exactly..."

* * *

AN: Yeah, so that was actually my first attempt at writing smut, so I hope it wasn't too silly. I'm a fairly sexually awkward person, so I apologize if this wasn't up to everyone's standards :(


	16. Chapter 16

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 16_

* * *

_Tali'Zorah vas Normandy_. It still brought a smile to her face, even months later. Changing ships was not exactly an abnormal thing among quarians, but she particularly treasured her current name. She hadn't actually been an active crew member of the Normandy for months, but people still called her that, most likely as a show of respect. Funny that a name born of shame quickly became something so very different.

But it was more than that. In most species there was a tradition of taking or giving a family name when one became married. Asari did it and turians did it, though that could get pretty complicated. More importantly, humans did it as well. She knew that being 'vas Normandy' had nothing to do with marriage in any way, but some how it still made her feel that much closer to Shepard.

And now she was going to get to see him again. Just minutes ago, she'd gotten the message that the Normandy was pulling up alongside their own ship, and was preparing to dock. They were earlier than she'd expected, and most of the admirals were already preparing to board for the meeting. Tali, however, was feeling unexpectedly nervous. She looked into the mirror again, readjusting her clothes and hood, making sure there were no smudges on her visor, before leaving the room.

Tali made her way through the ship's narrow halls, and her feet seemed like they were made of lead, and the ground made of mud. She hadn't seen Shepard in months, and her feelings for him hadn't changed in the least except to increase. 'Absence make the heart grow fonder', a human phrase that she'd never truly understood before falling for the galaxy's hero. But she had no way of knowing if he felt the same way anymore. They'd never made their relationship official in anyway, and hadn't had much other than that one night together. Did he want to continue to be with her? Did he regret their time together? They'd exchanged a few messages, but they'd been completely impersonal out of necessity.

By the time she walked through the Normandy's airlock, she was nearing a nervous wreck. But hell if she would let anyone else see that. It was not the first time she'd been glad for the privacy offered to her by her visor and helmet.

"Tali!" She turned to see Joker hobbling toward her from the direction of the elevators. "Wondered if you'd be part of the quarian delegation. You planning on staying? The ol' girl never runs quite as smoothly without you." His grin flashed as he came to a halt before her.

"I'll have to talk to the other admirals about it, but that was the plan, yes."

"The o_ther_ admirals? Is our little girl all grown up?"

"Very funny, Joker. So, how have you and EDI been? And the rest of the crew?"

"You can cut the crap and just ask how Shepards doing, ya know." Joker's grin was slightly more lecherous now, his eyebrows waggling in an exaggerated manner. She felt her face flame up, but decided to remain silent. Taking the hint, he continued. "Well, hes been pretty worn out, understandable with everything going on. But I think having Jane around is actually been pretty good for him, even if he spends half his time glaring down all the male crew members that even think about looking at her." He punctuated that with a laugh, "Not that he has any idea about who's actually-"

"Tali, I do not mean to interrupt, but I believe that the meeting as already begun without you." EDI's voice echoed around them, causing Tali to jump.

"Oh! Thank you EDI, I'll hurry. It was good to see you, Joker." With that, she left the pilot standing behind her, mumbling something about EDI intentionally ruining his fun. But she couldn't ignore what he'd said before... Who was Jane? A new crew member? There were clearly going to be plenty of new faces for her to meet. But this Jane was apparently someone close to Shepard...how close?

The meeting its self ended up being fairly quick, and uneventful. Seeing Shepard again, though... it was enough to send her heart racing, like some sort of adrenalin stim. As they made their way from the new war room, it was all she could do to prevent herself from becoming a bumbling love struck teen again. But as excited as she was to see him again, her doubts about their standing were doubled thanks to Joker, and she decided to keep the conversation strictly business. However, even as they chatted about the war, she couldn't stop the internal debate in her head. Was their night together a one night stand? Did she have any hope of securing his affections?

"What about us? Would us being together divide the fleet?" Tali's heart jumped into her throat at his quietly asked question, and she turned around to find him standing just behind her, a hair closer and it might have been considered indecently close. She'd never thought about it that way, honestly. Politics seemed so far removed from romance...

What he said should have soothed her fears, but it only made her wonder if perhaps it was a serious concern for him. Would being with a another human be easier for him in regards to the politics he now had to wade through? Jane sounded like a human name...

Shepard was the perfect gentleman, though, just like he'd always been. He promised to call her up to his cabin to chat when he had time, and as she turned to leave, he smiled softly and called her _Miss vas Normandy. _The little voice in her head squealed, but she kept her face as straight as she could.

With some free time on her hands before their mission, Tali decided to visit some of her old crew mates. From what she'd been told, Garrus, Liara, and Kaidan were all aboard, as well as Dr. Chakwas and Engineer Adams, and seeing all of them would hopefully get her mind off of... things. And so she made her way down to the crew deck.

Her first stop was with the good doctor, who was as well as ever. They caught up, exchanged stories about their past few months, and shared a quick hug before she left to find the others. Next was Kaidan, who according to Chakwas, was currently spending most of his time in the observation deck. That reunion had been significantly shorter and much more awkward, seeing as how Tali wasn't entirely sure what Shepard's feelings currently were regarding the events on Horizon. Finally, she made her way to the Main Battery.

As the door opened, Tali watched in amusement as Garrus visibly started, turning around in a flash with an expression close to that of a child with their hand caught in the cookie jar. His eyes, which were wide, relaxed a little as they landed on her.

"Tali, good to see you."

"You too, Garrus. Didn't mean to startle you." She smiled and he looked away, seeming somewhat anxious.

"No, it's not... Er, don't worry about it. How have you been?"

"Well enough, considering the situation." They continued with the usual niceties, but she couldn't help but notice his obvious discomfort. He was clearly nervous, but what about? Could this have something to do with Jane? Did he know something? She narrowed her eyes as his shifted to the door and he rubbed the back of his neck with a gloved hand, and she decided to get to the bottom of it.

"Garrus... Who is Jane?" As she expected, with the mention of the name, Garrus' eyes shot wide open again, and he started wringing his hands.

"Did you... hear about her from the Commander?" He wouldn't look her in the eyes... He knew something.

"No, I heard about her from Joker. Just now." Garrus groaned, bringing a hand up to cover his face.

"What ever he told you, its not- Wait, what did he say?"

"Not much of anything. That's why I'm asking you." He remained silent, just looking off to the side toward a low table that had his rifle parts and mods strewn out over it. After another moment of silence, Tali let out a frustrated sigh. "Fine, keep your silence if you want. I'll get all the information I need out of Liara, I'm sure." She turned and left the Main Battery, ignoring Garrus' calls for her to stop. Chakwas had mentioned that Liara had taken over Miranda's old room, and with in moments she was standing before a surprised looking freckled asari.

"Tali! What a pleasant surprise."

"Good to see you, too, Liara. Now tell me, who exactly is Jane? Garrus wouldn't give me a straight answer." Liara, who appeared to be slightly confused by Tali's whirlwind entrance, giggled a bit before responding.

"Yeah, I imagine he might not. Well, Shepard has actually forbidden me from disseminating any more personal information about crew members... But you could always go downstairs and meet her for your self?" Tali blinked, and stared at the Shadow Broker for a moment before swallowing.

"Where? In engineering?"

"Of course. She's generally a friendly person, not more so than the Commander, but certainly more open. She can have a bit of a sharp tongue, however."

"I see... Thank you, Liara."


	17. Chapter 17

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**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 17_

* * *

Tali paced outside the elevator for minutes before deciding to hit the 'down' button. She was probably making a mountain out of a mole hill, and maybe she was imagining everything. No, Garrus had been acting oddly, not his usual laid back self. Maybe it was something unrelated? No it was related to Jane in some way. The door opened, and Tali hit the button for the engineering deck, and started to wring her hands as the door shut and started it's decent. If there was something between Shepard and this Jane person, he would be open about it, wouldn't he? He'd tell her, for sure...

The door opened, and she stepped out, turning to begin the short trip into the belly of the ship, the area she'd once called home. She shouldn't be working herself into a frenzy, it was just all the stress she'd been under lately. That was it.

The doors pinged open, and she stepped into engineering slowly, gazing around at the familiar room. It was relatively empty, which was understandable seeing as how she'd passed much of what appeared to be the engineering crew having dinner in the mess hall. But Adams looked up from a console and smiled when his eyes landed on her.

"Tali! What a surprise! Its been far too long." He walked over and extended a hand, which she took with a smile.

"Indeed, Engineer Adams. Its a pleasant surprise to see you here."

"I assume by your presence that the quarian diplomats are aboard? I've been busy with-" The man was intrusted by the sound of a metal tool clattering to the ground just behind him, and they both looked over to see a red headed woman standing up from where she'd been crouching. She grabbed a dirty cloth from where it'd been tucked in her back pocket, and began to wipe her hands free from oil. But it seemed like a rather pointless task, seeing as how the rag, long with her arms and face, was covered in smudges from whatever task she'd been working on.

"All done here, Adams. Went in easier than I expected, considering the trouble I had with the other couplings." She glanced at the mess now covering her regulation alliance uniform, and grimaced. "Figures I make a mess of myself right after catching a shower..." Adams chuckled and handed her another rag which was slightly cleaner.

"Well, that's what you get for taking a shower during your break and not after your shift." He stated with a teasing note to his voice. The woman glanced at Tali over the engineer's shoulder, and he moved over with a gesture. "Jane, meet Tali. She was our resident tech expert during the hunt for Saren, and I believe during the Collector mission as well. Tali, meet Jane, my assistant and a regular member of the Commander's ground squad."

So this was Jane. Tali wasn't sure what she'd expected, but it hadn't been this short, somewhat solid looking, and oil covered woman. No, she'd pictured something more like perfect assed Miranda, or perhaps something like one of those strippers from Omega, with all her bits and pieces on display. But Jane seemed to be not unlike any other member of the crew, dressed in Alliance blue and working hard at whatever job was given her.

Whatever Jane saw in her, she seemed just as (if not more) surprised. Her mouth popped open in shock just for a moment, before curling up in a half smirk. She stuck out a mostly clean hand in offering, and after a moment, Tali took in her own in a firm shake.

"I'll let you too chat, you probably want to get to know each other. Tali, we'll catch up later." Adams excused himself, leaving her alone with Jane. Tali had to admit, she was fairly pretty. Not beautiful, not perfect like Miranda was, but she had certain charms. If her suspicions were true... She could see what John liked about her.

"So..." The other woman started, somewhat awkwardly, "You're a quarian. Wasn't expecting that. Not that that's-"

"If being with you makes John happier, I'll understand." The words were out of her mouth before she knew exactly what she was going to say. Oh well, might as well get everything out in the open... Better to work through this before she went up to see John, after all.

"What do you mean?" She seemed genuinely confused.

"Well, uh- You and John... you are... together, right?" Jane's eyes snapped open in shock, and the rag dropped from her hands to fall to the ground soundlessly. A moment later, she burst into laughter. Tali wasn't quite sure if she should be offended or not.

"Together? Wait, wait a second." She let loose a another couple of chuckles, running a hand through her hair. "Okay, let me reintroduce myself. Lieutenant Jane Shepard, Alliance Navy." The name hit Tali like a rock to the head, and she was sent reeling. They shared a name... But if they were married, surly they'd been together longer than 6 months...? What if..

What if Shepard had cheated on Jane with Tali? What if Jane had no idea what had happened that night before the Omega-4 relay? Tali brought her hands up to cover her visor as a sense of horror started to flood her. Apparently Jane noticed her distress, because understanding starting to dawn across her face, before her expression deadpanned.

"Let me guess. He didn't tell you about me either." Tali shook her head fervently, her voice having escaped her. "John is my brother. My older brother."

What.

"Whatever the state of our relationship," She started, her face gaining an understand and sympathetic expression, "Its certainly not romantic. Just thinking about that makes me feel a little sick, actually. No, no, hes my jerk of an big brother, that's all. You're free to do whatever you want with him, as long as you don't give me any of the details." She made a small dismissive gesture with a playful sneer, and Tali slowly pulled her hands away from her face, realization dawning.

And suddenly everything seemed to make sense. Of course Shepard... John... would like having his sister near by, to keep her safe. And of course, if he was a protective big brother, he would be looking out for Jane and keeping lesser potential suitors away. Liara's comparison of their personalities made sense too. She wasn't commenting on how good a match they were, just comparing them as siblings. And of course they would share a name, they had the same parents most likely!

"That makes a lot of sense... I'm so sorry, storming in here and dumping all of this on you. There's just been so much going on, and I-" She fumbled for the correct words, before landing on them. "Its good to meet you Jane, it truly is an honor. But now I'm wondering why your brother never told me about you..."

"Yeah, it seems that no one aboard the Normandy had any idea I existing... Except Liara, of course." The two of them were instant friends after that, having plenty to relate and chat about. But as their conversation came to an end, and Tali excused herself from engineering, she couldn't help but wonder...

Everything made sense now, except for why Garrus was a complete and utter nervous wreck.

There wasn't much for Tali to do aboard the ship. She wasn't really officially part of the crew yet, so she didn't have her own bunk, and she felt weird just hovering in engineering. So, eventually she found herself poking around in the dextro friendly section of the fridge in the mess hall. There wasn't much there, of course, but it was better than standing around. She pulled out what appeared to be a tube of protein paste, opened it and took a sniff. But then she turned around just in time to see Garrus ducking around the corner toward the lounge in what appeared to be his civvies. That was odd... He rarely went around without his armor except for late at night.

She put the dextro paste back in the fridge, and was about to follow him when her omni-tool pinged.

"Tali, I'm free if you'd like to come up." The Commander's voice came through clearly, and she felt a small nervous twist in her chest.

"I'll just be a moment." She replied before shutting off the com connection and making for the elevator. Whatever Garrus' problem was, it could wait until she and Shepard... John...? This was going to get confusing.

She stood in front of the elevator door, and as the seconds ticked by the anticipation nearly suffocated her. Why couldn't this ship just have a stair case or two? The door popped open, and Tali paused when she came face to face with Jane.

"Tali! I, uh-" She looked surprised, and almost sheepish as her eyes shifted to scan the hall behind her. The lieutenant was no longer wearing her oil stained uniform, but instead now wore a pair of black cargo pants, a pair of comfy boots, and a small and simple black tee shirt, with a dark hoodie looped over one arm. "Good to see you again, I'll just..." Tali nodded to her and stepped aside, watching as she quickly darted toward the lounge as well. The quarian had no idea whether this was normal behavior for the human woman, but she narrowed her eyes as Jane entered, the door controls flicking to red as they shut behind her. Storing the event away for investigation at a later date, Tali entered the elevator and hit the button for the loft. Soon she found self stepping forward into the Commander's personal quarters.

"Tali. Thanks for coming up." John stood up from his seat at his desk and made his way toward her with a gentle smile upon his face. Tali felt some of her worries, stress, and suspicions melt away as he took her hands in his, bringing one up to lay a light kiss upon it. Some, but not all, and John seemed to sense this. "You okay?"

"No... No I'm not. Seventeen million lives are riding on me. I think the stress of it all is starting to get to me. Over active imagination..." Tali let out a small sigh as he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her.

"What do you mean?"

"I- well... Don't worry about it. I'm just glad to be here..." She broke away from him, bringing a hand up to her helmet's visor. "I've been taking supplements. You know... Just in case-" She detached it, pulling it away, and his face softened as they made eye contact again. "-you were still interested."

"Nothings changed between us, unless you want it to have." John brought a hand up to rest of her upper arm and she laid her own atop it.

"Keelah, Shepard. I didn't come up here to look at the fish..."


	18. Chapter 18

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 18_

* * *

Some time later, Tali found herself curled up with John, gazing up at the stars through the skylight in the ceiling. He slowly ran his fingers through her hair, carefully untangling any knots he came across. They stayed like that for some time, just enjoying each other's company, before she broke the silence.

"Why didn't you ever mention you had a sister?" His eyes widened in surprise, but he didn't look shamefaced at all.

"It just... never came up. I always figured it'd be in my records."

"You'd be surprised how much of your records are sealed."

"I suppose that makes sense. So I assume you met Jane?"

"Yeah, Adams introduced us when I visited engineering. She's nice." He chuckled a bit, shaking his head with amusement.

"Yeah, on occasion. Its not unlike her to be somewhat ornery, as well." Tali swatted at him playfully in rebuke.

"You're just saying that because she's your little sister. I never had any siblings, you should consider yourself lucky!" His eyes softened at that, and he appeared pensive.

"I am lucky to have her. She's the best sister I could ever hope for. I don't know why its been so hard for me to talk to her lately. We used to be so close." Tali sat up, running a finger along his jaw line.

"Don't be hard on yourself. You're under a lot of pressure... Keelah, more than any of us combined. I'm sure she understands."

"Maybe. I feel bad though, I should be helping her. She's new on board and she can be somewhat abrasive and-"

"Actually, she was quite open and friendly when we met. Perhaps shes done some growing up in the past few years while you've been gone?"

"Perhaps..." She leaned into him, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him.

"Do you worry about how _all_ your new crew members are socially acclimating?"

"Not all the time. But she's my sister, its always been my duty to watch out for her. Back when we were kids she used to get into all sorts of trouble. We haven't honestly lived together since I enlisted at 18. Its hard to get used to the idea of her as a fully responsible adult."

"How much trouble can a little girl possibly have been?" A big deal of trouble, apparently, if John's dubious stare was anything to go off of.

"You have no idea. Back in high school - don't tell her I've told you any of this - we were both sent off to school on Arcturus Station, and with in weeks of her first day she was already neck deep with just about every unsavory group there was. She's always been the more charismatic one, talking herself into or out of almost anything she pleased, but she had a tendency not to see trouble before it was too late. I think I lost count of how many times I had to wade through drunken masses of teens at a secret keg party and pull her out of some sticky situation or other. Oh and the boys she'd get involved with... the worst sort of people!" Tali laughed at the indignant sneer that crossed his face, causing him to pause and lift an eyebrow in amusement. "What?"

"Are you sure it wasn't just that no one was good enough for your little sister?" He smiled and shrugged, but dodged the question.

"I hate that I have to include her on the ground squad as often as I do... But she's a brilliant fighter, well rounded with both long range and close quarters combat. Doesn't help that she laid into me pretty hard the first time I tried to come up with a lousy excuse as to why she couldn't come. But I'm putting my foot down regarding her.. erhmm.. sex life. I don't want drama popping up all over the place simply because I'm lax with the fraternization rules." To emphasize his point he ran a hand up her bare arm lovingly, sending shivers down her back. His hand came up to cup her cheek and she closed her eyes as she leaned into the comforting gesture.

"No offense, Shepard, but that's another lousy excuse. What, are you just preventing her from talking to or have any contact with male members of the crew?"

"God, I wish it were just the men that I had to watch out for. I don't think I've been unreasonable, exactly. Just been giving certain people... a little talking to. Every now and then. And I don't have to worry about everyone. Example, she and Garrus spent some time together doing some target practice when we were docked at the Citadel last." Tali's eyes snapped open, but she remained still as the Commander finished his explanation.

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, they've really hit it off, but I trust Garrus not to do anything stupid. Admittedly, I'm not too worried mainly because hes a turian... If he were human, I probably would have given him the same chat I've given everyone else. But like I said, I'm not too worried." Slowly, the pieces started to fit together, and Tali began to suspect she knew the reason behind Garrus' weird behavior.

* * *

When the door closed, the controls flashing red, Jane turned around to scan the room for the other occupant. Garrus stood in front of the large window in the middle of the room, gazing out at the stars with his arms crossed over his chest. Silently, she moved to stand next to him, dropping her hoodie on one of the near by seats and resting a hand lightly on his arm. With a smile he turned to face her, but his eyes flicked to the door quickly.

"You sure locking it is a good idea? Kinda seems... suspicious." He chuckled, causing her to roll her eyes.

"I have no intention of being interrupted. Again." He said nothing, just raised an eye ridge. Sighing, Jane relented. "Fine, you can unlock the door, EDI. But give us a fair heads up if anyone is about to come waltzing through it, would you?"

"Of course, Lieutenant." EDI's voice chimed through the room's speakers. The room went silent and Jane turned to face her turian companion. He raised a hand up slowly to brush against her shoulder, eliciting a smile from her.

"Thanks for coming up to talk with me." Garrus seemed oddly hesitant, almost nervous, which concerned her. She wanted to mention it, but she remained silent, allowing him to continue. "You can stop me at any time, if you're not interested. I'll understand, of course." He paused again, and he took her hands in his as he collected his thoughts. "We've kind of jumped into this, whatever we are, head first. Not that I'm complaining, of course. I've certainly enjoyed the uhh... _physical_... aspect of this. But I hope this can become more than just an easing of tension..." He trailed off, glancing out into the abyss behind the window besides them. "...I'm not exactly sure how I'm supposed to do this. The vids never really got this far, I-" He went silent the moment she placed a hand on his arm again, guiding him back to face her. She had an odd, fluttery sensation in her belly that was making her legs feel like jelly, distantly remembered from her teenaged years and school girl crushes. Jane Shepard didn't usually find herself in positions where she was unsure of what to say, but this appeared to be one of them. Damn her N level turian culture classes and their lack of romantic advice.

"I can't promise how things will work out... not with this war. But for now, I'll take anything you're willing to give."

"That's uh... good to hear." He was smiling now, in that odd turian way, and he leaned forward, brushing his forehead against hers. After a moment, the smiled faded, his eyes glancing down to where he still held one of her hands. "I just... I've seen so many things go wrong, Jane. I want something to go right." He looked up, and caught her eyes with a look so full of tenderness and sadness that she felt her heart thump painfully in her chest. "Just this once."

Jane wasn't entirely sure when her feelings had crossed over from physical attraction and friendship to something dangerously close to fluffy, squishy, teeth-rottingly romantic attachment, but it was a feeling she generally thought was reserved for teenaged girls and characters in dramatic vids. And yet... here she was.

She lifted a single hand up to his face, running her finger along his scarred mandible in a familiar fashion, and he leaned into the touch ever so slightly. After a moment, she retracted her hand and used it to grab hold of his, leading him over to sit next to her on the couch. The fact that they were able to fall into easy and comfortable conversation didn't surprise her; they always had, and she hoped they always would. They tried to keep it light, at first, but the mood was already too deep and moody to stay light for long.

"Had you spent much time on Earth, prior to the attack?"

"Well, besides those few months prior to the Reapers- I was there for a while during a portion of my N training. Didn't get to explore much at all, but it was... beautiful. Some of it, at least. The cities... not so much. I spent some time in one of the megatropolises, this one called New York City, back during high school. I was almost 16 when John enlisted after his graduation. We'd always been together, so I suppose I didn't take it as well as I should have. Got into a bit of trouble, might have beaten up some kids. I don't really remember the details, but I'm sure they deserved it." She chuckled, glancing away toward the window looking out onto the galaxy beyond. "Mom and Dad sent me to stay with an aunt in New York on Earth in hopes that a change of scenery would do me some good. Don't tell John about all this, I'm fairly positive he has no idea any of it happened. I fell in with a bad crowd in the city, a gang calling themselves the Tenth Street Reds."

"Wait, you ran with a gang as a teen? You know what, never mind, somehow I'm not surprised." She smacked him not all that lightly, but he grabbed her hand as a counter as he grinned. He rubbed his thumb along the underside of her wrist, marveling at how soft and vulnerable it was. "The Reds... the name rings a bell. Have they been active on the Citadel at all?"

"I think they're trying to be, but I'm not sure how well it's working out for them. Back then we were just a bunch of kids with bottles of spray paint and something to prove, getting in trouble. But the moment I turned 18 I ditched that life and enlisted, just like John, and never looked back. Best decision I ever made."

"Huh. Jane Shepard, street thug. And look at you now..." Jane stifled a yelp as he swiped her up off the couch to sit upon his lap, his eyes dark with something she was coming to understand as desire, "...in the lap of a police officer."

"_Ex_-police officer." She added and he snorted. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing a soft kiss upon his stiff lips. "But I'd be lying if authority figures didn't get my panties a bit damp," She added before kissing him again, this time much more deeply. He chuckled when she broke away, and raised an eyeridge at her.

"Really now. Damn, should have kept with Spectre training, I guess." His tone was light and joking, but caused her to draw back slightly in surprise.

"You were going to be a Spectre? Why'd you stop? From everything you've told me, you would have been a great one."

"Uh, well... when the original Normandy went down... Do you remember the smear campaign they launched about your brother?" Jane nodded, a small frown ghosting over her face at the memory. "Well, I dropped out of training soon after his funeral and left the Citadel." He'd been at John's funeral... Duh, of course he had, Garrus and John had been best friends since early on, according to the letters she used to get. In fact, he'd probably been one of the few that had gotten the chance to be up front during the ceremony, all of his squad had... Jane's mouth popped open in a silent 'oh!' as a realization hit her.

"I remember you!"

"Wha-"

"From the funeral."

"There were a lot of turians there, Jane."

"I'm almost positive it was you. Do you remember the incident where you had to escort a hysterical soldier out after she punched some diplomat during the viewing of the coffin?" His brow ridges furrowed as he thought back to that painful day, years ago.

* * *

_There were no words for the complete emptiness Garrus felt in his chest as he gazed at the flag covered coffin sitting in front of them. It was empty, which only seemed to make it worse, knowing that Shepard's body had never been found. Some people had been to the front to say some words to the congregation, but hell if anything had made it through the haze Garrus found himself hanging in. That a man as genuinely good as John Shepard could be ripped from life so easily, after doing so much for the galaxy... it was beyond unfair._

_Eventually, they were allowed to make their way to the front to form a line. Garrus couldn't quite grasp the point of some of the human funeral rituals, but he went along with it simply out of respect for the Commander. Each person got a few moments to say a final good bye to the coffin before leaving to give their sympathies to whomever. At least, that was what Garrus could gather. _

_The line moved slowly, and a few feet a head of him he could hear two older men whispering under their breath to each other. He immediately recognized Ambassador Udina and some other human that worked in the Presidium embassies. With a sneer, Garrus tried to ignore them, but he felt his back stiffen as their words started to become clear enough to understand._

"_-honestly, it couldn't have worked out better."_

"_Now he can't go around making an uproar about imaginary death machines."_

"_He served his purpose admirably, but will do much more good as a martyr then he ever did in life."_

_Garrus stilled, forcing himself not to strike out at the men, despite his instinct to rip them limb from limb. Shepard would have ignored them, and in his memory, so would he. Apparently, the shorter, red headed woman standing directly between him and Udina did not come to the same conclusion. She raised her hand to rest on Udina's shoulder, and as he turned around her fist came up to collide with his nose with a sickening crunch. _

"_Uggh! What is wrong with you?" The man shrieked as his hands came up to cover his nose, which was already leaking blood at alarming rate._

"_YOU SICK FUCK!" She shoved Udina backward into the other human diplomat, and it took Garrus a moment to react. "You think you can just sit here, _at his funeral_, and disrespect him like that?" She made to attack him again, but Garrus managed to grab her arm before it could make contact with the ambassador. "Let me go! He deserves a shit ton more than a fuckin' bloody nose!" Garrus struggled to get her limbs under control before starting to drag her toward the room's exit. "I'm not done with you yet, you-" His translator had an issue with whatever expletives she used after that. Finally, he kicked the door open, hauling her through it. Once the door closed she stopped struggling, shrugging off his hands, and only then did he the streams of tears trailing down her cheeks. "What the fuck are you looking at, you fuckin' dinosaur?" He glanced away as she scrubbed at her eyes, and said nothing. As she continued to cry in silence, he carefully put a hand upon one of her shoulders, squeezing gently. He had no idea who she was, possibly an old flame of John's? _

_In the end, he'd never found out who she was. As soon as it was clear that she'd calmed down, they both reentered the room and joined the line at the end again, and not a single word passed between them for the rest of the time._

"That was you? No..." Garrus looked up at her where she was perched on his lap, and though she said nothing, her eyes said enough. "Ah... hum. Well. I did not see this coming." He chuckled, leaning back as he gently rested his hands lightly on her hips. "I hope you're not harboring any ill will after I carried you out of there."

"At the time, if I'd be able to wriggle free, I probably would have attempted to rip you a new one. But I was sort of a pressure cooker of unpleasant emotions at the time, so it was nothing personal. You were just doing your job."

"I'd always assumed that you'd gotten a demotion or dishonorable discharge or something."

"I think my mother pulled some strings with some higher ups, or possibly even Anderson. No one mentioned it again after that, just swept it under the rug."

"I wouldn't have noticed even if they had mentioned it. A day later I was on the first shuttle off the Citadel to spirits knew where."

"Ah, right. You ended up on Omega, right?"

"Eventually, but it took awhile of drifting before I ended up there. Stayed for a little while, and I couldn't ignore how... disgusting it was. Not the grime and the dirt, but the complete lack of justice and compassion. One night I stumbled across a man forcing himself upon some woman, and I decided to actually do something about it. It didn't take long before I started to make a bit of a name for myself, even had a team of my own. For a time." He noticed the moment her eyes widened as understanding dawned.

"Waaaait. You were Archangel." It was more of a statement than a question, and any doubt she must have been feeling was erased as she watched him and realized he wasn't going to refute the claim. He knew what was probably coming, but he was finding that it was easier to talk about what happened the more time that was between him and Omega. "Jesus Christ, Garrus. Do you know that my CO had us watch security clips of some of your attacks on the merc bases?"

"Seriously?"

"We were a small infiltration group, not unlike yours, though we were slightly more trained than your team and our team leader wasn't nearly so strategical gifted. Once he got his hands on those vids, he must have spent hours picking apart every little reason behind every move you made. But I thought Archangel died..."

"He did, along with his team." Garrus closed his eyes, bringing a hand up to rub his scared mandible at the memory.

"Ah..." She brought her own hand up to cover his gently, and laced her fingers with his. It was an awkward fit at first, but they made it work.

"This beauty-" He tapped their conjoined hands against his mandible, "-is the handy work of a gunship. You can thank your brother and his impeccable timing that I'm sitting here with you today." Her eyes were heavily lidded now as a grin curled its way across her face.

"Well, I'll be sure to thank him. I've always had a thing for men with scars..."


	19. Chapter 19

AN: Sorry about the wait, everyone! I've had a surprise house guest the past week, and didn't really have much time. As consolation, here's a longer than usual chapter for you all! I'll be resuming a normal update plan for the next few days, however we're quickly catching up with where I'm at with the story on the kmeme, and so I have a question for everyone: When I reach that point, do you want me to continue to update daily with the shorter sections that I post on the kmeme? Or would you all rather wait a few days for longer updates?

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 19_

* * *

If Tali hadn't been convinced of Garrus' relationship with the younger Shepard before, she certainly was now. As they picked their way through the Geth Dreadnought, their every interaction screamed of hidden intention, to the point where Tali was almost shocked John didn't see it for himself. Then again, those who were willfully ignorant of something rarely saw the truth even when it was dangled in their faced... It was almost painful, really.

They weren't so blatant as to make any vocal public displays of affection, but there were small things here or there. Sometimes one would give the other a hand over a particularly steep obstacle, and the contact would linger moments longer than it should have. Other times, they would encounter enemies and after rolling into cover they would remain close enough that their legs would brush up against each others. More than once, she'd turned back to spy them glancing at each other with tender or heated glances when they thought no one else was looking. Garrus had even once raised a single talon up to brush along the rim of Jane's helmet's visor, which could easily be seen as a romantic gesture even to non quarians.

Then again, Tali realized, it probably wasn't all that different from the small, hopefully unnoticeable interactions between herself and John. How much about their relationship did the others know about? Had John told his sister? Jane'd had a sort of knowing look earlier when she'd introduced herself...

Just then, John's hand 'accidentally' brushed against Tali's lower back and she felt a shiver run down the length of her spine, causing blood to rush to her face in a flush. She quickly glanced back at their other two companions, only to find them lost in their own little silent world. Keelah, this was like some sort of weird, life endangering double date, where no one really seemed to know about it but her. Or even one of those sappy asari tv dramas. If John really didn't know about the other two, then she should probably tell him.

"Tali, you come with me, we're going to move on ahead. Jane, Garrus, stay here and cover us. When we secure the room ahead we'll signal for you to move forward and join us."

"Sure thing, Shepard." Garrus added as he and Jane settled into a secure vantage point. It didn't take long for Tali and John to progress though the hallway, and within minutes all of the Geth had been neutralized. They stood there for a moment, and she expected John to radio to Garrus and Jane that the coast was clear, but he just turned to look at her with an expression that she couldn't quite make out thanks to his helmet.

"Good to see your skills haven't dulled at all since I last saw you, Tali." The words themselves were harmless enough, but the tone of his voice _screamed_ something else entirely. She smirked back at him, knowing that her expression was just as hidden as his.

"Yours certainly haven't either." She paused as he lifted a hand to ghost long her upper arm before coming to a rest upon her shoulder. "Thanks for helping us with the Geth, Shepard. I appreciate what you're doing here." His eyes bore into hers, and for a moment it was hard to breath and she almost worried that her suit had sprung a leak.

"Well-" His voice was carefully light, but had a playful undertone, "I care deeply for the quarian people." She cocked an eyebrow at his not so subtle attempt at flirtation, and took half a step closer, bring a hand up to lay on his chest.

"Its good to be back on the Normandy." His other hand found its way to her waist, pulling her closer still.

"Let me know if its too quiet for you to sleep and I'll find you some place _louder_..."

"Oh barf..." Tali and John jumped, pushing away from each other as Jane stepped into the room, followed closely by Garrus. Jane had her arms on her hips, and looked a cross between amused and disgusted. "If you guys are going to play this game, at least flip to a personal com channel first."

"Or get a room, and sort it out there." Garrus added a moment later.

"Jane! I- uh... didn't see you there." John nervously glanced back at Tali, shifting uncomfortably. Who would have guessed that the only thing in the galaxy that could unnerve Commander John Shepard was a little ribbing from his little sister? The thought made Tali giggle, though she tried to hide it. Jane crossed her arms over her chest, shifting her weight back to one side.

"Clearly. Something going on you want to tell me about?"

"Err..."

"Shepard and Tali became physically intimate during their fight against the Collectors." All four of them started at the sound of EDI's somewhat smug voice as it filtered through their com units, and John brought a hand up to cover his helmet's visor.

"_Thank you_, EDI." The Shepard siblings intoned in unison.

* * *

By the time they landed on Rannoch for the final push against the Reaper base, Jane was thoroughly exhausted. John had even been rotating the teams for a short rests, but that really only bought her 2 hours of shut eye. She soon found her self geared up and heading for the shuttle, preparing to go planet side again.

"All set, Jane?" John asked as she stifled a yawn on her way to the shuttle's open doors. She nodded and looked up to see Garrus watching her with a small, concerned turian smile. He extended a hand, which Jane took, and helped her up into the shuttle without a word. He gave her hand a small squeeze before letting go and sitting down. She settled next to him, across from where John and Tali were trying to get comfy. The door shut a moment later and with a rumble they were off. From experience, Jane knew they had a few minutes of silence to enjoy before they landed, but she wasn't entirely sure whether silence was a good thing or a bad thing right now. John, who hadn't had the luxury of a 2 hour nap, looked dead on his feet.

Jane had to admit, they were a good looking couple, regardless of the very apparent age difference. Judging on the fact that Tali had been on her pilgrimage when they'd met, she couldn't be more than 24, maybe 25. It was something that Jane certainly wasn't going to let John live down, the slick little cradle robber that he was, but honestly Jane had no issue with the relationship. As far as she could tell, Tali had been a loyal and hard working member of the crew from the very beginning, and had done nothing to warrant any misgivings from Jane. Mom may or may not agree with her judgment (no one would ever truly be good enough for Mama's little boy...) but that was for the future to tell. Jane glanced across at Garrus, and realized that Admiral Hannah Shepard would probably have more of an issue with a turian in the family than a quarian, what with her experience in the First Contact War.

Jane caught sight of a slight movement in her peripherals, and glanced back at John just in time to see his hand quickly retreating from where it had rested for a moment on Tali's upper thigh. John was carefully not looking at any of them, but Jane grinned, knowing that he could see her just fine. John glanced back at her, his face void of any emotion, but his eyebrow twitched in irritation as Jane wiggled her own eyebrows with suggestive humor. He looked away again, and crossed his arms across his chest, prompting to Jane lift a hand up to stifle a very un-marine like giggle.

"Geez, John. Its not any wonder why the entire ship knows, you completely and utterly lack the ability to be subtle." She always had loved a good game of 'poke the bear'. John had opened his mouth to retort when the shuttle's speakers sprang to life.

"Uh, excuse me? What exactly do you know about subtly, LT?" Joker's voice echoed around them and Jane sat up straighter, her grin disappearing. "Have you heard that old expression about the pot calling the kettle black? Because if not, I'm pretty sure that the Commander would be interested in knowing about you and- Mmmrph!" The pilot was cut off suddenly, mid sentence, with a strangled noise. The shuttle's occupants exchanged looks and John's eyes narrowed on hers.

"Pardon the interruption, Commander." EDI's voice replaced Jokers a moment later, "Jeff is currently... indisposed. The shuttle is nearing the landing zone, and it is advisable that you prepare to disembark." With that, the connection was severed, leaving an incredibly awkward silence behind. John's eyes didn't leave her as the shuttle landed, nor did his intent stare waver as the doors opened with a low hiss. Sensing the mounting tension, Tali made a quick retreat from the small space, quickly followed by Garrus. Jane made to stand and leave as well, but she wasn't more than a foot out the door when she felt John's hand on her shoulder, a silent order to stop. She turned to look at her brother with exasperation.

"What, John?"

"What, exactly, did Joker think I would be interested in knowing?"

"Nothing that concerns you."

"If it happens on my ship, it concerns me. The rules that are in place are there for a reason." Jane's eyes narrowed at his words, and she took a threatening step toward him.

"Don't give me that crap, John." She hissed and poked him in the chest. She doubted he felt much through the armor, but the gesture was there none the less. "Don't think I didn't notice how long it didn't take you to peel her out of that pretty little suit. Don't expect me to follow rules that you yourself don't respect." With that, Jane turned on her heel and marched over toward the other waiting squad members, leaving a gaping John Shepard behind her.

* * *

Their stay on Rannoch ended up being a lot longer than originally anticipated. A 300 year war wasn't something that ended on the drop of a hat, apparently, and who better to seal the deal than Commander Shepard himself. Technically, something of this magnitude (two species sharing a planet is actually somewhat of a big deal) should have taken weeks, if not months to broker, but its funny how total galactic annihilation tends to speed things up. The Normandy left the quarian/geth home world approximately one week after arriving, and started its trip back to the Citadel. But if it were possible for John to travel from one side of the galaxy to the other without at least one important side mission or plea for aid coming to his attention, then he was yet to see proof.

So, two weeks after they arrived on Rannoch, and they were finally making their way back to the Citadel. They had about two hours left until they were docked, and John had decided to spend it seeking what little peace he could find, tucked away in the captain's quarters, staring at his fish while surrounded by discarded data pads. Not that he'd been able to feel any sort of peace after Joker's little comment in the shuttle that one day.

Somewhere on this ship was someone that'd messed around with his little sister. But no matter how much that rankled him, nothing he did turned up any dirt. He'd even stooped to sifting through EDI's security recordings, and though he found nothing out of the ordinary, there were suspicious time gaps of a few hours at a time here and there that EDI had no record of. He'd tried insuring that Jane never left his or Engineer Adam's sight, but not even five minutes after the end of her shift, she'd vanished, and he immediately regretted allocating the funds for her to upgrade her tactical cloaking omni-tool application.

It'd taken all of his will power and better judgment to _not _start dragging his entire crew, one by one, into his cabin and grill them for every drop of information they had about his sister's activities. But no... That would have been an irresponsible and unethical use of his power, apparently.

The logical part of his brain told him that he was over reacting, and that what Jane did was her own business. Like usual, when it came to his sister, he completely disregarded that part of his brain. It wasn't too hard to ignore the logic when he thought back to that night, years ago, when she'd been not much older than 14. She'd spent the better part of the night curled up in his arms, crying her eyes out after having been dumped by her first serious boyfriend. She'd been completely inconsolable, and there'd been nothing he could do but sit there and rub her back until she cried herself to sleep. The next day, the boy had turned up in the nurse's office with a bad case of black eye/bloody nose/bruised ego, and had refused to explain how it'd happened. When questioned, John had denied all charges of course, but the kid hadn't been able to look him in the eye again after that.

Though, as he reminded himself, he was positive that no one aboard the Normandy would intentionally hurt Jane, it didn't mean she was any less likely to get hurt. On a ship that consistently hurled it's self into hell and back on a regular basis, making close personal connections was a dangerous thing. He was still convinced it'd been mostly luck that had gotten them all through the Omega-4 Relay alive, but that luck wasn't going to be with them always. Who ever it was that Jane was seeing, whether it be Kaidan or Traynor, or perhaps Vega or Allers even, there was no telling whether they'd make it through another encounter with a Reaper. John didn't want to see Jane cry over a broken heart again, not if there was something he could do to prevent it.

Perhaps he could convince Tali to do a little snooping for him. Girls like to chat about romance and that sort of thing, right? Maybe Jane would open up if Tali approached her under the pretense of getting a coffee... Or whatever it was that girls did together. Failing that, Garrus might be able to be convinced to pry a little. Those two were friendly enough, weren't they?

* * *

With a heavy heart and a sigh, Jane shut off her omni tool. The constant light, warm breeze of the Presidium brushed across her face, ruffling her hair, and she sat forward to rest her head in her hands. Hearing about the death of a friend was something that never came easy, no matter how many times you had to experience it.

"Sorry I'm late, EDI pointed out some inconsistencies that I had to look over last minute." She looked up to see Tali slip into the seat next to her, and Jane tried to put on a smile. It was a miserable failure, and she stopped trying. Tali tilted her head in confusion, "Is something the matter?"

"No, I'm fine. Just finished catching up with my unread mail. Got a report from ANN about an old friend that died recently on Palaven. Here-" She passed Tali a menu, "They claim to have food for each species, so I assumed they meant quarian too." Tali took it with a nod and opened it.

"Who was the friend that you lost? If you don't mind me asking..."

"No, of course not. He was a quarian, actually. Met him years ago on the Citadel during shore leave. He was on his pilgrimage, and we've kept in touch over the years, some what. Not so much in the past three, but that's life, I guess. His name was Kal'Reegar, though I've forgotten what ship he served on by now."

"You know Kal?" Tali's head snapped up to gape at her, and Jane glanced at her over her menu. "Its a small galaxy, I suppose. I almost didn't believe it when they told me about his squad. He and I were close friends... How did you two meet?"

"That's a story for another time, Tali." She grinned and took a sip from her drink. They shared a few moments of silence before more questions started burning. "Not that I mind terribly, but was there a reason for why you asked me to lunch?" After another moment, Tali set her menu down and folder her hands in her lap, looking slightly nervous.

"I.. umh. Well, to be honest, John asked me to pry into your private affairs and find out what I could about a possible relationship." Jane's eye brows shot up in surprise and she leaned back in her chair. "-But... I really have no intention of being the one to tell him about your relationship with Garrus, so you don't have to worry about me prying into anything."

"I'm not particularly surprised that John would ask you to do that, though I am surprised that you're not going to expose us, and that you knew about us to begin with."

"Oh come on, Jane. I'd be surprised if half the crew didn't already know. Nothing stays secret on that ship for very long, after all."

"Ah, not the first time I've heard that." Jane sat forward, putting down her own menu and leaned her elbows on the table. "Well, thanks for not outing Garrus and me..."

"I've seen the way you two look at and act around each other. Whatever it is between you seems to be something special, and I don't really want to be the one to come between that." Jane smiled at the younger girl gently, taking one of her hands in her own.

"Thanks, Tali."

"I don't really like lying to John, though. You should tell him yourself, because if he finds out on his own, its only going to be worse."

"I know..." Jane ran a hand through her hair, "Now if I could just figure out how to tell him in a way that won't end up with him ripping off the good side of Garrus' face. I happen to like it the way it is."

"Well, I'm sure he'll understand. I mean, you're his sister, and he's his best friend and right hand man. I'm sure John will be happy that you two are so happy together, right?"

"Ha, maybe." The waiter finally came over and took their orders before taking their menus and leaving. "So... Should I be expecting to receive a quarian in the family any time soon? I've always wanted a sister." Jane grinned as Tali visually started at the question, and began wringing her hands in her usual nervous way.

"Oh, I- well... Oh Keelah..." She brought her hands up to cup her helmet, and she looked away, clearly flustered.

"Relax, Tali, I'm just kidding. As long as you guys are happy, I'm happy." At that, the younger woman visibly relaxed, her hands settling down into her lap.

"Thank you... That means a lot. I was a little worried, what with John's reaction to even the possibility of your own relationship. I figured it was some sort of human thing. You humans don't always make the most sense."

"Ha! I'll drink to that."


	20. Chapter 20

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 20_

* * *

Jane passed through the doors into engineering, and was pleased to see that it was completely empty. As suspected, most of the crew was out enjoying their first land side dinner in over two weeks, leaving her with a little bit more privacy then usual. She glanced around the room, noticing the camera and it's little red light in the upper corner. She whipped out her omni-tool and a moment later the red light flickered and died.

"No worries, EDI, you know the drill. I'll turn it back on when I'm done. Just pretend I'm not even here."

"Understood, Lieutenant." Jane grinned, leaned back against one of the consoles, folding her arms across her chest, and she waited. And she was not disappointed, because two minutes later the doors sprung open again to admit a very determined looking turian.

"Hey, big guy, what took you so long?" She pushed back against the console and took a step forward, only to pause when she saw the intense look in his eye as Garrus approached her. A heartbeat later she was wrapped in his arms, his face buried against her hair and neck, inhaling deeply.

"I missed you... Haven't been able to concentrate all day no thanks to all your teasing little text messages. Hope you're ready to live up to all your promises." Jane felt his mandible flicker against her cheek playfully before he withdrew just far enough to look her in the eyes with a sly grin (she was getting better at recognizing expressions of his. Practice makes perfect, after all).

"Hmm-" She hummed lightly as he trailed a single talon along her jaw, "I might be, depends on whether you plan on making it worth my while." Garrus chuckled before pushing her back until her butt was pressed up against the console behind her again.

"We can't keep this up in secret for ever, you know..." He muttered as he nuzzled her temple with a sigh.

"I know... Tali thinks he'll take it well enough if we just tell him. But not right now, it can wait till tomorrow, can't it?" She leaned forward on her tip toes and pressed her forehead against his briefly before pressing her lips against his lightly. He growled suddenly and returned the kiss whole heartedly, his tongue snaking out to brush along her lower lip. She grinned and wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him closer.

The doors to engineering opened yet again, and neither of them noticed as a third person stepped through into the room.

* * *

Tali put a little spring in her step as she made her way through the CIC to the elevator. Lunch had gone very well, and she was definitely make a good impression on Jane. They hadn't had much time for talking other than work related things during the past week or so, so it'd been nice to have some time just to get to know each other. And after lunch, Tali had taken a little time to do some personal shopping, and she was fairly positive that John was going to approve of some of her new... more _interesting_ acquisitions. She hit the 'down' button, and waited as the elevator started its journey from wherever it was.

"Tali! Just the person I wanted to see." She looked up to see John step out from the door leading to the war room, and smiled. "I got your message about the lunch thing with Jane. A shame you couldn't get anything out of her..."

"Well, I'm sure if there really is anything going on, she'll tell you about it." He stopped in front of her and took one of her hands in his.

"Maybe. So, what would you say to a dinner date? I had EDI look up a few nice places on the Citadel that serve dextro and levo food."

"As much as I would love that, Shepard, I'm really behind on the calibrations I was supposed to have finished today, what with my lunch with your sister and everything. How about you come down and keep me company instead? Maybe we can get dinner after that if there's time?" That caused him to smile and he nodded.

"Sounds good. You head down and I'll be right behind you. Just going to check my messages first." The elevator doors opened and he let go of her hand as she made to step through them. She gave him a small wave as the doors closed and she hit the button for the engineering deck. A few minutes later as she was stepping out toward her usual workspace. But she froze as she passed through the doors into engineering and spotted the two entwined bodies before her. Without saying a word she quickly dashed from the room and leaned against the hallway wall, catching her breath.

"Shit- Shepard!" She whispered and headed back toward the elevator. If she was quick, she'd be able to stop this from getting out of hand and give Jane the time she needed to tell her brother on her own. She hit the 'up' button, and a moment later her belly dropped through her feet as the door opened to reveal John Shepard.

"Shepard! I- um! Change of plans! I don't have anything else I need to do, so how about we head back up stairs and go get something for dinner?" She tried to get into the elevator and grabbed his arm, but he grinned at her with a look that said nothing but 'trouble'.

"Oh come on, Tali. EDI's sensors say that engineering is completely empty. Let's have a little fun before dinner, what do you say?" He pulled her out of the elevator even as she dug her heels down, trying to stop him from leaving.

"No, really Shepard, I don't thin-eep!" She squealed as he wrapped an arm around her middle and pulled her up onto his shoulder like a sack of rocks. "Put me down right now!" She hammered her fists against his back and he set off, heedless of the pending disaster. "EDI! Help! Make him stop!"

"Belay that order, EDI. Come on, Tali, we won't get many changes like this in the near future..." Tali felt panic starting to set in as the first set of doors opened. "Nearly the entire ship empty? What could be bett-" He froze as the second set opened, all she could do was sigh in defeat.

"Bosh'tet."

* * *

For the life of him, John could not figure out why Tali was struggling with this much ferocity. If he didn't know better, he'd say she was actually upset about something. He was about to a set her down and ask her about it when the final doors to engineering opened. He slowly set Tali down when he saw that the room was, in fact, not empty.

"Garrus? What are you-" The turian visually jumped at the sound of his name, and turned around to face him quickly. John's eyes widened as they fell on the small human woman that came into view as the other man moved. "Jane?" Both were completely silent, and John started to notice the smaller details. One of Garrus' hands was tucked up under her shirt, resting on her back, and her face was flushed with something he suspected was not embarrassment. As Garrus quickly snatched his hand away, John noticed that Jane's belt and pants were unlatched and he felt his blood start to rush. "What the fuck do you think you're doing to my sister?" He took a step forward in what he figured was an imposing manner, and Garrus immediately raised both his hands up in a universally understood sign of placation.

"What the hell, John?" Jane barked as she pulled her shirt down and quickly did up her pants, but John ignored her as he strode up to stand in front of the offending turian.

"Spirits, Shepard, I didn't mean-"

"Didn't mean _what_, exactly?"

"It's not-!"

"Not _what_? I'm pretty sure this is exactly what it looks like! You've been fucking my sister behind my back! I trusted you!" John was right in his face now, and Garrus was looking more and more distressed and uncomfortable with each word.

"Shepard, I didn't-"

"What _didn't_ you do, exactly? Because it clearly wasn't my sister!"

"_Enough!_" Jane pried him away from Garrus, and stood between them, her arms crossed and her eyes flashing with enough anger to possibly even rival his own. "I don't know what you think you're doing John, but this is below you. Back off, this is none of your business." He flung his arms out, the outrage pulsing through him like fire.

"Not my business? This is my ship, everything that happens here is my business!"

"If I were any other woman, any other crew member, you'd pat Garrus on the back and congratulate him on getting some. The only reason why you're making a scene right now is because I'm your sister!"

"And that just gives me even more reason to be upset."

"That's ridiculous, John, and you know it! I'm not some 14 year old girl that's wet behind the ears anymore! I'm an adult and a soldier, just as accomplished a soldier as you. I don't need my own personal panty security team anymore! You don't need to go around scaring off my boyfriends any more."

"Well I'm sorry if you have a terrible relationship track record! I'm sure I don't need to remind you about how much fun high school was?"

"Exactly, John! This isn't high school, so stop acting like it is! I'm sick of all this drama, we should be above this sort of thing!"

"I can't believe this! Ugh!" John let out a frustrated noise and folded his armed across his chest as he started to pace before the two. After a moment, he stopped and glared up at Garrus. "And don't think I've forgotten about you. How could you just go behind my back like this, Garrus?" The sniper looked down slightly, and John hoped it was out of shame.

"I'm so sorr-"

"Don't you dare, Garrus. You have nothing to be sorry about." Jane snapped, and her eyes never left John, her glare sharp enough to cut glass. "John is just being unreasonable."

"Unreasonable? _Me?_" John turned on his sister again, poking a finger in her chest once before she shoved his hand away. "What_ is_ unreasonable is that now, apparently, my sister is into fucking turians!"

"Excuse me?" He could hear the shock and outrage in her voice as her eyebrows shot up behind her bangs, and she gestured over to where Tali was still standing awkwardly in the doorway. "What, is it a crime to sleep with a turian, but not a quarian? You fucking hypocrite! You march around, spewing all of your pro-alien bullshit, and yet in truth you're just as ass backwards as Cerberus." The words cut through him, burning him like acid.

"Jane... You know I didn't mean it like that."

"Didn't you? How else could you possibly have meant it? What are we supposed to think? Garrus has had your back all these years, and from all accounts he has stood by you when nearly no one else would! And this is how you treat him?"

"This has nothing to do with Garrus! Or- well, almost nothing to do with him! Fuck, this is so out of hand. How could I be so stupid. Jane, I have no problems with the fact that he's a turian! That's the least of my worries! I'm angry because I assumed you weren't interested him him _because_ he's a turian. If I'd known, I would have warned him off like I did everyone else on board." He started pacing, and he could swear he could feel his blood pressure jumping upwards like a rocket. "Do you realize how many people I had to prevent from making moves on you?"

"Well maybe you should have let me handle it on my own!"

"Fucking hell, Jane! I shouldn't have been so blind! For all I know, you've sexed up all the aliens we've had on board since Earth!"

"That's out of line, Shepard." John's attention snapped back to the turian in surprise. Garrus was now openly glaring at him, and his voice was razor sharp, the closest thing he'd come to retaliatory since their confrontation with Sidonis months ago. John glanced back to Jane, who was starring at him with wide, shocked, and almost hurt eyes. He realized with a sigh that he'd probably gone too far. "Look, I-...!" He lifted a hand up and ran his fingers over the stubble covering his head and deflated, his anger starting to seep from him. He slumped, the stress of the past weeks and months finally hitting him all at once. All the pain, all the loss, the death and the hard choices that he was forced to make with billions of lives on the line. And here he was, arguing with one of the only people still alive that would love him unconditionally. "I'm sorry Jane, I didn't mean that. I'm just... hurt that you both felt the need to hide this from me." Her face hardened again, and whatever vulnerability he saw in her disappeared in an instant.

"Do you want to know why I dragged my feet, John? I had absolutely no idea how to approach this-" She whipped a hand out disgustedly to gesture towards him, "-thing who keeps calling himself my brother. I barely know you anymore, John, and you don't even seem to care. You fucking _died!_ You abandoned me again, just like when you enlisted, and you just come waltzing back, without even the decency to send me a 'hey, what's up, sis?'. And now we're living under the same roof for the first time since we were kids, and you have nothing to say to me unless its related to this _god damn war_!" She was nearly panting now, her eyes accusatory and spitting fire. John felt his heart tighten, and realized he had nothing to say in his own defense. How had he let this happen? His own sister didn't even recognize him. He clenched his fists at his side, having reached an all new level of self disgust. If she didn't know him anymore, maybe he _was_ just some horrible Cerberus clone after all? "And you expect me-" She continued, pointing an angry finger in his direction, driving the nail in further, "-to just spill my heart out to you? When you've-"

"Jane, enough." Garrus cut her off, placing a hand on her shoulder, and she immediately paused, glancing back at him silently. His eyes were on John, watching him carefully with an experienced investigator's eye. "Would you mind giving me a moment to talk to him alone?" After a split second of consideration, Jane nodded, and made for the door, shouldering past John roughly. He turned to watch as she pushed past Tali as well, but paused as she was about to pass through the door, glancing back at him with cold, glinting green eyes.

"If you want to talk like civilized adults, you know where to find me. If not, then we're done, John." With that, she left, her foot falls fading as she passed through the second set of doors. Tali gave him one, sympathetic nod of her head before following the other woman to the elevator and leaving the two men alone.


	21. Chapter 21

AN: Okay, so here is my tentative update plan. I'm going to switch to updating every other day, but with medium length chapters. They won't be as long as some of these last chapters were, but they won't be as short as the first few chapters were either. This is all subject to me actually sticking to my writing plan, of course. I might also switch it up if I end up with an odd or awkward transition. We'll see! Anyway, thanks to everyone who reviewed or messaged me with your thoughts! It means a lot :D

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 21_

* * *

The two men waited in silence until they heard the distant hum of the elevator. Garrus had known he would have to talk to John in private, but even after he'd made the prospect a reality, he honestly had no idea what to say, or how to start. The other man, his CO and closest friend, stood in front of him, his brow knitted in upset frustration, his hands still in fists at his sides. Garrus prepared some lines in his head, something about how he never intended to do any harm...

"Garrus, you know I don't have anything against turians, right? What I said before, it came out wrong."

"Of course. I imagine if I were in a similar situation, I'd have reacted similarly. Not everyday you learn more than you want to know about your sister's sexual preferences."

"God, Garrus, I don't want to know _anything_ about my sister's sexual _anything."_

"Sorry, sorry." Garrus caught himself before he could reach a hand up to rub his own neck in that odd human nervous twitch he'd picked up. John reached a hand up to rub his eyes, and then crossed his arms again. "Shepard," Garrus started slowly, "You know I wouldn't do anything to hurt Jane."

"Of course I trust you wouldn't hurt her, not intentionally. But what happens when, say, a few months or years down the road, you realize you're not quiet as curious about humans anymore?"

"This isn't just some sick fascination with humans. It isn't about turians or humans, its about me and her."

"Okay than, what if you decide you want to start a family of your own someday, with kids of your own? Or what about your father? From everything you've told me, he would almost certainly dislike of her." John was pacing again, his eyes on the floor.

"I'm done seeking my father's approval. If I live through this war, I'm going to live my life the way I choose to, regardless of what he thinks."

"And that's another matter. What if you _don't_ make it through this alive? Jane gets hurt no matter what you choose to do, then."

"Any one of us, if not all of us, could die in this war ,Shepard you know that. We're all aware of the risks, both to our selves and our loved ones, and that includes Jane, and even Tali. She'd be just as hurt if you died, probably more so." John came to a halt again, and he was clearly still very much upset, though doing his best to contain it. This whole situation, honestly, confused Garrus. "Shepard, I understand I broke your trust regarding your sister, but why, exactly, do you not want her to be in any relationships? Unless there's some sort of human thing I'm missing here, shouldn't you be happy for your sister, not angry?" This only seemed to make him bristle more, his chin raising slightly in indignation. Perhaps he hit a little too close to home?

"Okay then Garrus, answer me this: What, exactly, are your plans for my sister?"

"My... plans?"

"Yes. For the future. Assuming we win the war and you both make it through alive." Garrus considered how to best answer the question. It wasn't that he hadn't imagined a future with Jane, he certainly had. But it wasn't really something that they had talked about at all, and he had no idea what sort of future she wanted. He had to be careful.

"Well, I'm hoping that Jane will want to continue our relationship. Its up to her, but if shes interested, I certainly am. I won't force her one way or the other, though."

"But you're both bound to run into the species barrier one way or another, someday. What happens if you decide to take your relationship further, and your family doesn't approve. What will you do if they won't accept her?"

"I already told you what I think about my family's approval."

"Okay then, what about our family? I have no way of guessing how our mother will react to this. Her father, our grandfather, was killed during the First Contact War, did you know that? And she served during it as well. What if she doesn't want a turian son-in-law?"

"It's a little early to be thinking about marriage, isn't it?"

"Oh, so you don't plan on marrying her?" Garrus got the distinct feeling he'd falling into a verbal trap as John's voice raised in calculated indignation.

"It's not that, we just haven't spoken about it at all yet. If that's what Jane wants later down the line, then that's fine with me, regardless of what any family says."

"Okay, and then what happens if Jane wants children?" Once again, Garrus was forced to think of the most diplomatic answer, seeing as how Jane and he had certainly never gotten this far.

"Well..." He brought up a single talon to scratch his chin as he gathered his thoughts, "Once again, a little early to be thinking about children, _but-_" He cut off John before he could have his 'ah ha!' moment again, "If that's what she wants, then once again, that's fine with me. If she wanted human children of her own, than I would love them regardless of who the male donor was. Or if she preferred adoption, then I'd love them as well." John seemed to be trying to think up another way he could 'pop the bubble', so to say, and Garrus sighed in frustration. "Why are you trying so hard to prove that she and I will never work?" John's eyes met his with fiery intensity very suddenly at that.

"Because _no man_ will ever be good enough for my sister, that's why." They held each other's gaze for another moment, each not wanting to back down, before John groaned, bringing a hand up to massage his temple. "Look, Garrus, I really need time to think about all of this."

"I understand. I'm assuming we won't let it effect the mission...?"

"Of course not. You've always had my back when it's really mattered, and as far as I'm concerned that hasn't changed. I'm not childish enough to let that come between us, regardless of what Jane thinks." He turned to leave, but stopped and sighed before looking back tiredly. "Look, I'm not ready to give you both my blessing regarding your... relationship. I'm not stupid enough to think I can stop you both from seeing each other, but please do me the favor of not rubbing it in my face either?"

"Of course, Commander."

* * *

As the doors to Purgatory opened with a whoosh, the usual cacophony of club noises over took Jack. She breathed in a sigh of relief, basking in the chaos that she rarely got to enjoy these days. She glanced down at her omni-tool as she continued toward the bar, and noted that she was 5 minutes early. Jane was most likely already here, seeing as how she'd been early the past few times they'd met up for drinks. But as she passed Jane's usual spot, Jack noted her absence with a frown. Stepping up to the bar, she placed her order and proceed to relax, letting the music and atmosphere wash over her.

"You're late." Jack nearly jumped as she glanced over at the speaker. Jane was sitting just next to her, and from the look of her and her numerous empty glasses, she'd been there awhile.

"Bullshit, I'm 5 minutes early." Jack sat down and took a good look at the other woman. Jane took another sip from her drink, only to realize it was empty.

"Oh." She was a mess, her make up was smudged, her face was flushed red from the alcohol, and her hair was ruffled as though she'd run her fingers through it one too many times. From the droop in her shoulders, and the way her head hung, she was clearly not in the mood for anything resembling lively.

"How long have you been here, exactly?"

"I dunno. Shit, probably awhile. I think." Her speech was somewhat slurred, and seeing as how Jack had never heard that from the other woman, she guessed she'd been knocking them back since arriving. "Didn't really know where to go after that fiasco, so I just came right here. Good choice." She tried to take another sip, only to realize again that it was empty. She gestured for another, and the bartender rolled his eyes. "John Fuckin' Shepard and his high and mighty butt cheeks. Humph..." Jane gave a fake salute with her glass before slamming it down, and Jack raised an eyebrow.

"You sure a ray of sunshine today, Princess."

"Fuck you, Jack. Don't you ever have crap days where you just want to blow something up, and just stand there, watching it fuckin' burn?" She was slowly slouching forward further, her eyes narrowing but completely falling to focus on Jack's face properly.

"Ha! When I feel like doing that, I do it, unlike coddled pussies like you... Or at least I used to, back before this teaching thing."

"Pfft," Jane scoffed, lazily gesturing with her still empty glass, the ice cubes rattling and coming dangerously close to tumbling out, "If you got fired, or quit, or whatever, John would take you back aboard the Normandy any day. I don't-" She was interrupted by her own hiccup that ended as more of a burp, "-think a single day has gone by that John hasn't regretted not having his old crew. Guess I'm just not good enough." She paused, and seemed to be talking more to the bar top than Jack at this point. "Fuck. If he'd asked me to go kill Collectors with him, I'd have dropped everything in an instant. But that cunt ass bitch never thought to ask."

"Look, Princess, I get it. You're pissed off at your brother about something, but I honestly don't care. I'm not here to listen to you piss and moan about your problems, I'm here to get drunk with you, so shut the fuck up and get another drink."

"...And you know what really sucks? He-" Jane wobbled backwards, only barely managing to stay on her stool, "-he doesn't think I'm responsible or smart enough to choose for myself." She giggled suddenly, a sloppy sly grin melting across her face, "But, the jokes on him, because he can't tell me I didn't pick well enough! His own best friend! Ha!" Jack rubbed her face, and tossed her drink back before demanding another. It was going to be a long night.

"Yo, Barkeep. Get her another drink so she'll shut up."

"..head too far up his own self-righteous asshole to judge me. He's used to everyone letting him have his way, what Shepard says goes. Well, that bullshit ain't going to fly with me." The bartender set Jane's next drink down in front of her, and she snatched it up as quickly as her sluggish reflexes could bare. With in seconds it was drained. "Okay, so maybe I've made some piss poor choices in the past. But I was a fucking teenager! That's like... what you're supposed to do. You do stupid, fucked up shit, that way you can look back at your teenage years and cringe, realizing how dumb you were then and how smart you are now. But this time... This time I didn't fuck up." After a few seconds of blessed silence, Jack glanced over at her companion to see if she was alright, only to watch as Jane suddenly burst into laughter.

"...Okay, I'll bite. What's so funny?" She kept chuckling for a moment, and brushed away a stray tear, before slapping the bar top and sighing happily.

"I finally came up with a word for it... I'm a... Dextro-sexual!" The laughter continued, and Jack felt the urge to smash her forehead through the counter top.

"Oh for fuck's sake, Princess. Have you ever heard the term 'too much information'?"

"He has no right to butt in like that, especially when his own relationship is even odder. At least Garrus isn't 8 years older than me. Or encased in a fully body ziploc baggie." She banged her newly empty glass against the counter top again, "Another. Please, thank you, and you're welcome." Jane hiccuped again and Jack quickly grabbed her glass, pulling it away from her.

"Scratch that order, she's had enough."

"Hey!" Jane shot back, indignantly, but Jack ignored her. "Well, fuck you too. Maybe I deserve to get plastered, after all this shit."

"Stow it. I don't give a flying fuck about your family drama or your love life. You're far too talkative tonight, and clearly drinks are _not_ making it any better." Jane's head flopped forward to lean against her arm atop the counter top, and she groaned.

"This is all so fucked up. He died, and I mourned his death, painfully regretting the fact that I saw him at most once or twice a year, and didn't get to do much more than send messages every few weeks. Now I finally get this miracle second chance and we're spending it fighting like little brats, or avoiding each other like total strangers." Jack knew better than to suspect she was crying, but the other woman's voice came dangerously close to cracking more than once. She glanced around nervously before lifting a hand to awkwardly pat Jane's shoulder once or twice. With a frustrated sigh, Jack downed her next drink, content that at least she'd... tried. That had to count for something. Jane's head swiveled just enough so that one green eye could poke out, crinkled in a sly grin. "Oh Jack, you _do _care."

"Fuck you, Princess."

"Gee, hope I haven't missed the party." Jack turned to watch as Garrus stepped up just behind them, one of his eye ridges raised in amusement.

"Oh thank god..." Jack mumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose, taking a sip from her third drink. "Nope, plenty of fun left for you, if you hurry. Just get her out of my hair before I kill her."

"Garrus!" Jane twisted around on her stool with enough speed to send her crashing into the guy sitting on her other side. "Whoops, sorry..." She struggled to stand up, and was helped up by her boyfriend's steadying hand on her arm. She glanced up at him, her eyes narrowing. "You look pretty good for someone who apparently just lived through a death match. Who threw the first punch?" He still looked amused, but now it was mixed with a healthy dose of concern as she stumbled again.

"It went better than expected, actually, all things considered. What do you say we head back and get you into bed..." Garrus tossed a credit chit onto the counter for the bar tender. "Thanks for watching out for her, Jack."

"Screw you."

"As charming as ever."

"Bite me Garrus. Better yet, bite her. Probably how she likes it."


	22. Chapter 22

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 22_

* * *

With a clatter, John placed his plate of rehydrated eggs and synthetic bacon down on the table and fell into the seat. He gazed down at the food and his belly squirmed unhappily. He pushed one of the yellow clumps around with his fork and he wondered if he was going to be able to keep any of it down even if he could convince himself to eat it. He didn't want to, but he'd promised Tali he'd try to take to care of himself, regardless of stress, missions, Reapers, or infuriating little sisters, and he was going to try his very best.

"Hey." He looked up and smiled as Tali sat down across from him with a tube of what looked like her usual dextro protein paste. "Thought you might like a little company?" It was more of a question than a statement, and when he nodded his agreement, she sat down carefully. After a few more days docked at the Citadel, they'd finally left for Thessia and their next mission. The morning after their argument, he'd tried to come and talk to Jane, but it quickly dissolved into more yelling after he'd accidentally decided to wake her too early from a hang over induced lazy morning sleep in. And after that, he was too frustrated with her to even try. They were both being stupidly stubborn and with every step forward they took, they somehow managed to find themselves two steps back. Jane now refused to speak to him unless he approached her as Commander Shepard of the Normandy, and had nothing for him but a sneer and a cold glare if he came as John Shepard, brother-extraordinaire.

He'd fucked up, he knew that. He'd over reacted, just like he'd feared he would, and apparently over stepped a line that she was too old to be okay with now. But it was also apparent that she was carrying some older wounds, wounds that she'd kept bottled up and had allowed to fester, and he had no idea how to even begin dealing with those. She still resented him for leaving her behind when he'd enlisted at 18? How was he supposed to apologize for that? Was that even really his fault? His frustration must have been showing on his face, because a moment later he felt a soft brush against his hand and he looked up to see Tali leaning across the table in order to give him a small amount of comfort. But the moment was shattered as he heard heavy foot steps and the familiar gait of Jane as she strode into the mess hall; her cool and silent indifference rolled off her in waves. He said nothing as she passed and he looked back down to his own breakfast as she fixed hers.

"Good morning Jane!" Tali chirped cheerfully, though her tone was careful and tighter than usual. Jane was silent as she finished filling her bowl with oatmeal before turning on her heel and heading back toward the crew quarters.

"Tali. Commander." She replied coolly as she passed, though she refused to even glanced at them as she passed. Tali sighed when the other woman disappeared and John glared at the door as it shut.

"This is ridiculous. I can understand why she's angry at me, but taking it out on you is taking this too far. I'm going to make her come back here and apologize for her immature behavior." He made to stand up, but Tali caught the sleeve of his uniform quickly.

"Shepard, don't. It's only going to put her back up further, especially if she thinks you're giving me preferential treatment because of our relationship."

"I'd hoped you two were- I dunno, friendly. Or something." John finished lamely as he sat back down, his face betraying his weariness and fatigue. Tali looked down at her own hands, her shoulders slumping somewhat.

"They usually are, at least to my knowledge." They both looked up as Garrus entered the room, making his way toward the fridge. He pulled out a dextro tube of his own, and moved toward their table hesitantly. "She's just not handling the stress very well right now, I think. Do you guys mind if I join you...?" He asked carefully, and John's eyes narrowed a little. He winced and grunted a little as Tali's foot dug into his shin sharply, and he relented with a nod.

"Of course, Garrus." Tali stated, gesturing to the seat next to her. The turian sat down, and glanced at the datapad he'd brought with him. They fell into an awkward silence, and John honestly had no idea what to say to the other man. He wasn't angry, exactly. Not any more, anyway. It smarted a little that Garrus hadn't thought to talk to him about the whole 'hey I'm banging your sister' thing, but John'd already begun to admit to himself that that wasn't everything. Honestly, of all the men that Jane could have ended up with, Garrus was probably one of the best. He was loyal, smart, caring, and all sorts of other traits that John had to admit were exactly what he'd want to see in his sister's significant other. No, he was coming to realize that more than anything, he'd developed an almost father-like desire to be the only important man in Jane's life, and it was hard to let that go.

"Don't take it personally, Tali." The turian's voice broke the silence, and Tali looked up from her breakfast.

"Hm?"

"Don't take it personally that Jane's giving you the cold shoulder along with the Commander. Like I said, I don't think you've done anything wrong, Jane is just taking her anger out on you."

"Are you sure that's it?"

"Almost positive. I think she's just annoyed by a perceived uuhh- well... hum." Garrus glanced across at him nervously, causing John to sigh in defeat.

"...Double standard, yes I know. I handled this all badly, I'll be the first to admit it. I just need to talk to her about it all, this time not when she has a hang over."

"I think that might be a good idea." Garrus added, his voice pleased. "You two should be supporting each other right now, not at each other's throats."

"I agree, Shepard," Tali piped in as she nodded, "When she and I spoke during lunch the other day, I think she was leaning toward telling you about their relationship, she was just nervous something like this would happen."

"Wait, so she did tell you about her relationship?" John asked in surprise and Tali winced and looked away. Had she lied when he'd asked her about how it'd gone?

"No, not exactly. I'd already known, actually... It was sort of obvious, Shepard. I'm surprised it took you this long to learn about it, to be honest." Tali fiddled with her dextro tube as Garrus sighed, bringing a palm up to rub his eyes in exasperation. John sat back and ran a hand through across his head.

"Oh for fuck's sake. I'm never going to live this down, am I?"

* * *

"Why does the Alliance hire pilots with brittle bone disease?"

"You're shitting me. The turian military has one about me?" Garrus grinned as Joker turned a skeptical eye up toward him. He'd finally found a chance to take a small break, and since Jane was busy down in engineering, he'd taken the chance to pop up to visit Joker. Some how, they'd ended up trading rather racist turian and human military jokes. It shouldn't surprise him, honestly.

"Oh, absolutely. I heard it myself from a private back on Palaven." It was obvious that Joker's ego hardly needed more stroking, but a little fun never hurt any body. Not too badly, at least.

"All right, why _does_ the Alliance hire pilots with brittle bone disease?"

"So their marines can beat someone in hand-to-hand drills."

"Pfft!" The pilot snorted a choked laugh before continuing, "Damn, you need to tell James that one." Joker paused, and Garrus watched as he slowly started to grin. "Oh, and speaking of hand-to-hand drills, you wouldn't believe the security footage I stumbled across from the cargo bay last night..." He didn't even need to see Joker's now lecherous grin to understand exactly what he was talking about.

"Spirits, she didn't..." He whispered to himself, and Joker could barely contain his laughter at this point. The night before, he and Jane had had one of their sparring matches, which had a tendency to take on a completely different direction these days. Usually Jane took care of the security cameras before they met up, but apparently she didn't give a fuck anymore. Another glance at Joker's smug face confirmed his fear.

"You'd better be careful, heaven forbid the Commander get his hands on this. I'm betting he won't approve of your illicit little love affair with his sister." Garrus glanced away, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, about that..."

"_You can't be serious!_" Both looked around toward the source of the commotion, and watched as the Shepard siblings stepped out of the elevator. "Damn it, do you seriously think that I'm going to let our personal business effect my performance in the field?" Jane followed the Commander as he started toward the cockpit, her voice echoing through the silence as many of the crew turned to watch them. John stopped and faced her, his shoulders set but his voice calm.

"Well you're not exactly doing a good job displaying your professionalism, Jane." She bristled, her eyes narrowing as she crossed her arms.

"With all due respect, _Commander_, I'm one of the best damn soldiers on this ship, and deciding all of a sudden to leave me behind on an important mission simply because you don't agree with who I'm fucking? _That's_ not professional. _Sir_." Her words were scathing and clearly aimed with an intent to hit John where it hurt. Garrus left the cockpit and slowly approached the arguing pair in hopes of calming the situation. The tension between the two was almost palpable, and the nearby crew members were clearly fidgeting with discomfort. He could hear the uneven footsteps of Joker as he followed behind slowly, curious about the noise.

"What's going on?" Garrus asked as he stopped besides John, and the Commander glanced at him before gesturing to his sister.

"_Lieutenant_ Shepard here seems to have forgotten the chain of command."

"Stop trying to avoid the issue, John!" Jane hissed as she took a step forward, jabbing a finger in his direction, her jaw set. She relaxed back again when Garrus shot her a warning glance, and she crossed her arms again. "He wants to leave me behind during the mission on Thessia."

"Bringing both you and Garrus is pointless, your skills over lap and I don't need both of you."

"That hasn't stopped you in the past."

"That's besides the point, Jane." John's voice clearly stated that he was fed up with the conversation. Garrus swallowed as he noticed Jane flexing her fist. John was clearly not in the mood to be forgiving if she lost control.

"If Jane wants to join you this badly, I'm okay with staying behind in her place."

"Stay out of this, Garrus." John snapped, and the staring match between the Shepards remained unbroken as Garrus sighed.

"Just admit it, John." Jane spat, "You're making a poor tactical decision because you can't grow up and let me handle my own personal life."

"I'm not having this discussion, not here in front of the entire crew. If you want to continue this later, come see me in my cabin after your shift." Garrus watched helplessly as the argument continued to spiral out of control. With all the onlookers, John wasn't going to appreciate him stepping in and undermining his authority, and so Jane was effectively on her own unless things really got out of hand.

"What, don't want the crew to know that I'm dating a-" John cut her off, stepping up close and bringing his mouth close to her ear to whisper.

"You'd probably do best to not flaunt your sexual preferences in front of the entire galaxy. Not everyone is as understanding as I am." He hissed before stepping back, straightening his blue and gold officer's uniform. She narrowed her eyes again, and there was silence for a moment. Garrus felt his back stiffen as her glare transferred to him suddenly, and she moved before he even had time to react. With two quick steps she was on him, wrapping one arm around his waist pulling him close, and the other grabbed the front of his armor's cowl. His eyes widened as she jerked his head down and her lips crashed upon his, eliciting a surprised groan from him. Before Garrus could even really register what was happening, she released him again, pushing him back before turning on her heel and making for the elevator.

As soon as he had his footing again, Garrus glanced around the room to find that every pair of eyes was on him. He did his best to ignore them, and turned to see John's annoyed visage. He brought a hand up to rub at his neck, before catching himself and forcing his hand back down to his side.

"I'm uh..."

"Just get out of here, Garrus. I don't want to talk about it."

"Yes sir." He quickly made his way to the elevator, which he'd just missed. After pressing the button, he could make out Joker's voice from across the room.

"So, uh, how about that, Commander. Kinda expected a bit of a bigger reaction from you."

"Shut up, Joker." John growled, walking past him toward the cockpit.

"Don't tell me... Did you already know about them? Here I was, coming up with dozens of perfect ways to spoil their fun, and you already knew? Well shit."

* * *

Hours later, Jane stepped out into the cargo bay. Her hard suit's boots clicked as she marched toward the shuttle to join the others heading down to Thessia. She might not be 'officially' a member of the ground squad, but she was not about to give up yet.

"Jane..." Garrus sighed as he spotted her, and took a step forward.

"Don't worry, Garrus." She stated as she waved him off and walked past them into the shuttle. Liara and Tali poked their heads in and gazed at her, each glancing nervously at each other. Clearly, word about her argument with John regarding this mission had spread like wildfire. Ignoring them, Jane sat down and continued to don her gloves before grabbing her rifle in order to double check it was in working order.

"_Jane._" She turned to see John striding toward them, fully armored and his mood no better than it'd been last time. "God, if only sororicide wasn't illegal, I swear to god I would kick you out the airlock this instant." He muttered as he checked the time on his omni-tool.

"Oh well, glad to see I'm loved." She spat, but she remained seated. "I don't care what your pathetic excuse is, I-"

"We don't have time for your bullshit right now, Jane. I don't know why you insist on being this stubborn and difficult." He gestured for everyone to board, and took a seat across from her. "Look, stay or go, I don't even care any more. We're running late and the longer you screw around the more innocent people die." A smug grin graced Jane's face, and she didn't budge. When it was clear that she wasn't leaving, John gave Cortez the all clear to prepare for take off. The rest of the team quickly took their seats. "...On two conditions, Jane, or else you're staying with the shuttle."

"Of course, there's always a fucking string attached, isn't there." She grumbled, her grin melting.

"After this mission, you and I are going to sit down and talk. We need to clear the air, and get past all of this so that we can focus on whats really important: The Reapers. No yelling, no complaining, no arguing. Just me and you, brother to sister."

"But you were the one who started yelling and acting ridiculously in the first place!" She protested as the door shut and the engines purred to life.

"Regardless. I'm sorry about the yelling, and I promise I'll remain calm if you do. Deal?" The shuttle shook as it took off, and she nodded.

"Deal. Second condition?"

"You cut out the disrespectful and insubordinate attitude you've got going. I don't know if your last CO let you get away with it, but you're damn lucky you're my little sister. You try this shit again, and you're going into lock down until I find a safe place to kick you out on your dishonorably discharged ass. Do I make myself clear, Lieutenant?" She quickly felt the uncomfortable sensation of shame as the other three passengers averted their eyes awkwardly.

"Yeah." He raised an eyebrow, and any pleasure still she felt from thwarting him previously evaporated. "Yes, sir."


	23. Chapter 23

AN: So yeah, that thing I said about shorter chapters? Totally didn't pan out, because they only seem to be getting longer xD...

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 23_

* * *

The situation on Thessia was worse than Garrus had feared it'd be. As the shuttle neared the landing zone, they started receiving news feeds from the planet's surface, and the destruction was... hope shattering. It immediately reminded him of that day, not that long ago, when he'd watched the Reapers descend upon Palaven. The destruction after the first day had left millions dead, millions more injured, and the image was forever burned into his mind. Liara was clearly experiencing something similar now as she watched her own home world burn. Her eyes were wide, and her hands clenched into tight fists. Tali placed her own hand on the asari's arm in a comforting gesture, but Liara's attention was transfixed upon the monitor in horror.

John and Jane were immobile, watching with darkened eyes and almost identical scowls. He could almost imagine the images flashing through their own heads, most likely of their burning home world, Earth, light years away. Garrus carefully laid a hand on Jane's shoulder, and she turned to flash him a small, forced smile. It didn't last long before it vanished, but he applied a little pressure before letting go again. John remained motionless, ignoring them as he continued to watch the monitor.

The fighting was rough, and since they'd been forced to land some ways away from the heart of the temple, they were forced to do a lot of it before finally arriving at their destination. When they approached the giant statue in the middle of the temple, they were all exhausted, but pleased to see that the structure was mostly untouched by the war thus far. Everything went smoothly as they searched the room and finally came across the hidden treasure trove of data secreted away by the asari. And then Cerberus arrived.

Honestly, Garrus was surprised that they hadn't expected them to turn up. It seemed like Cerberus had their dirty little hands in just about everything these days, and it was clearly having an effect on John's stability. The Commander put on a brave face in front of the crew, but Garrus was among the select few that could say they really knew him. He could see the cracks, hastily patched and covered up, but they were there none the less. The stress from the war, the deaths of numerous team mates and friends, and most recently the break with his beloved sister... They were taking their toll on him and it was affecting his performance in the field.

The anger that shined in John's eyes as he battled Kai Leng was so intense that Garrus imagined he could almost feel it. But it wasn't a cool anger, one that focuses and guides you, it was a scalding hot and simmering anger. The kind that makes your attacks jerky and uneven, that makes you foolish and brash, and it was evident in John's movements and lack of judgment that even he fell pray to the powerful emotion's control. Liara and Tali did their best to keep up and help as they could, and he and Jane found safe places from which to take their shots from. But it wasn't not enough.

Kai Leng finally tired of toying with them, and charged at Liara, grabbing her and flinging her backwards and into Garrus, knocking them both to the ground. The weight of the asari crashed into him with more force that he'd expected and his head smashed in the pew behind him, the world going black. When Garrus came to a few seconds later, he could hear the unmistakeable rumble of a gunship. Immediately, Garrus felt his body seize as his mind flashed back to that day on Omega months ago. The sound of the engines enveloped everything and a sickeningly familiar knife of fear penetrated him, keeping him in place for just a moment too long.

"_Move!_" Someone screamed, and the trance was broken. Garrus did the first thing that came to mind, and flung himself over Liara, protecting her as the temple shudderd in the wake of the explosions. Debris crumbled to the ground around them, and he prayed to the spirits that the others were faring better than them. When the roaring and shaking finally stopped, Garrus groaned and rolled off of Liara. He snaped a hand to his side as it screamed in pain.

"Garrus, what happened? Are you okay?" Liara muttered as she struggled to sit up. Nodding to her, he managed to pull himself up somewhat and started scanning the room for the others. Some distance off, Tali had started to come to, but both John and Jane were missing. He spotted a gaping hole in the floor across the room, and he feared the worse. Following his line of site, Liara clearly came to the same conclusion.

"Shepard!" She yelled as she quickly stood and dashed toward the pit. Garrus tried to stand as well, but tumbled to the floor as his knee gave out. He looked up again to see Kai Leng turn away from the console, the precious data in hand.

"Crap-" Garrus cursed as he struggled to sit up once more, but the wound in his side shrieks again. Across the room, Liara was leaning over, reaching for something, and Garrus dared to hope...

"Stop right there, you bastard!" At the base of the shattered statue in the center of the room stood Jane. She was missing her rifle, and had nothing but a pistol which was aimed at the would-be ninja's back. She took a step forward, and stumbled before steadying herself again. Garrus could see a trickle of blood trailing down her face from a cut on her scalp, and one of her cheeks was badly scrapped. Based on the stiff way she was holding herself, they weren't the only injuries she was sporting.

"Jane! Stay back!" Garrus yelled, but she ignored him, her eyes never leaving her target. With another curse, Garrus tried to stand, only to gasp in pain as his knee refused to hold him. It was a miracle that John had earlier been able to stand up to the cybernetic monstrosity in a Cerberus uniform, and that had been mainly due to his own cybernetics and biotic abilities. Jane... Jane was only human. She was a great shot, and fantastic in hand-to-hand, but was she going to be fast enough...?

"Ah, well if it isn't Shepard Jr. I hoped we might cross paths at some point." Kai Leng had turned to face Jane, his mouth curled up in a patronizing sneer.

"Hand over the data, and I'll consider not blowing your brains out right here." Jane spat, taking another few steps forward, her pistol trained on him carefully.

"And what fun would that be? I've heard so much about you and your interesting service record." Jane frowned and took another step.

"Shut up, and give me the god damn data before I rip it from your cold, dead hands."

"I don't doubt you'd try, _Jane. _ From what I've read, you're known to be quite the hothead, shoot first, ask questions later. A pity it wasn't you in your brother's shoes, Cerberus could have used a powerful woman like you."

"Give. Me. The data._ Now._" Another other step closer.

"Your brother was a weak, pathetic excuse for a human. You, however... You know how to get the job done, no matter the cost. You're ruthlessly efficient, nothing stands between you and victory. It's not too late you know... With someone like you on our side, humanity would crush its enemies under heel... Your heel. You never would have made the same mistakes as your brother." Kai Leng smirked slyly as Jane paused, her feet rooted to the ground. Her gun remained pointed at him, but her aim wavered ever so slightly.

"Don't trust him, Jane! He's using you, you know that!" Garrus' voice cracked as he screamed out at her, wincing as he forced himself up onto his stronger knee. He knew Jane, at least he liked to think he did. She might have a more morally ambiguous view of the world than John, not unlike his own in fact, but she'd never... She wouldn't... Not Cerberus. The siblings might have their differences, but Jane's deeply bottled and recently uncovered resentment for John couldn't push her to accept such an offer, surely...

"You could be the hero John never could be." The Cerberus agent reached out a hand, proffering it toward her, and her eyes narrowed.

"John is ten times the hero I could ever be." A single shot rang out, echoing around the shattered temple as Jane pulled the trigger, but the other man was faster. He rolled to the side and dashed toward her, sword drawn. Jane's eyes shot open in surprise, and managed to hop backwards just in time to dodge a viscous slash. Across the room, Liara started to pull John up, and one of his armored hand gripped the ground above him. Garrus managed to make it to his feet, keeping one hand clamped firmly to his injured side. He began searching the debris for his rifle, or any weapon, for that matter.

"So, you're just as much of a disappointment as your pathetic brother... Its a pity... I hear you're a great lay." Jane fired off another few rounds, but they were blocked by his shields. "But again, I also hear you've been fucking a scaly cuttlebone. Lets see if your blood is just as blue." Jane growled and charged forward, whipping out her omni-blade and plunging it toward the man's throat. Kai Leng brought his own blade up to block it, but just at the last second Jane twisted and kicked out at his knee, attempting to knock him to his feet. He jumped, flipping around land behind her, causing her to whip around and roll to the side in order to dodge his sweeping slash.

"Gotcha," She muttered as she brought her pistol up and leveled it at his temple, finger tightening on the trigger. "Not so tough, are yo-" Garrus' eyes widened and his blood ran cold as she froze. Jane looked down, and her other hand came up to feel the blade that had pierced through her middle like a hot knife through butter. Pain forgotten, Garrus ran toward her as her gun fell from her fingers and time seemed to slow. Kai Leng held the sword still for a moment, before ripping it free, bright red blood gushing from the gaping wound. Without the added support of the bloody blade, her knees gave way, and she pitched forward to land gracelessly upon the dirt covered floor.

"Huh, looks like your blood's just as red as the rest of our's. Go figure." Kai Leng spat as he wiped the gore from his weapon and turned to leave.

"_Jane!_"

* * *

With a sudden heave, John managed to pull his arm up and looped his elbow over the ledge. Liara grabbed his other arm, insuring he didn't slip. It was a miracle he was still alive, and not pancaked at the bottom of the seemingly bottomless chasm below him. Bits of debris continued to fall from the ceiling above, but nothing large enough to worry about. He had no idea if any of the rest of his squad had lived through the attack other than Liara, but he couldn't let himself worry about that now. Kai Leng had had enough time by now, and probably had the data already.

"Gotcha," He heard someone utter from just feet away, and he looked up to a wonderful site. Jane was not only alive and breathing, she had her pistol up against the side of the bastard's head, her finger tight on the trigger. She grinned that cocky smirk of her's, and John remembered exactly why he brought her along on the tough missions: When things got rough, Jane always got the job done, no matter the cost. God, he loved that about her. Strong, right up until the very end. Nothing got between her and total victory. Not even Kai Leng. "Not so tough, are yo-"

It happened before John really could understand what he was seeing. Kai Leng twisted ever so subtly, his sword gliding soundlessly through the air. Jane's eyes widened, her lips forming a soft 'oh' as the it's sharpened tip found its home deep within her, passing through her under armor just to the left of her protective hard suit shell. It cut cleanly through her, continuing until it broke through the other side in an eruption of crimson.

Liara, her back to the nightmare before him, continued to pull him up on to the ledge, but John's limbs felt as heavy as lead. With one swift movement, the Cerberus agent pulled back, unsheathing the blade from Jane's body with a wet _ssshhhick_. She released a soft sigh as she crumpled to the floor, the blood already starting to pool around her limp body. Kai Leng muttered a snide remark, but it could have been gibberish for all John cared.

"_Jane!_" He screamed as he pulled himself to his feet and sprinted toward her as fast as his sore legs would take him. He came to a sliding stop besides her and gently rolled her over, surveying the damage. The gash, though thin, had cut clean through her, and the internal damage was sure to be extreme. Her suit had most likely already begun to treat it with medigel, but even so they needed to get help soon. "Jane! Jane, stay with me. Can you hear me?" Her eyes were clenched shut tightly, her face a rictus of pain. He carefully started to apply pressure to the wound, which caused her to gasp.

"Oh spirits..." John looked up to see Garrus running as fast as his injured knee could bare, his arm wrapped tightly around his waist. He fell to his knees on Jane's other side, his eyes wide. "No... No, no, no-" He lifted a hand up to brush a lock of hair from her face gently, though his hand was clearly shaking. "Jane, hold on, we're here. You're safe, its going to be okay." His voice said anything but, and it shook almost as much as his hand did. She coughed roughly, her hand reached out blindly, groping around for... something.

"Don't move, you're losing blood. Hold still!" John barked as he tried to grab her hand in his.

"Don't let-" She let out a soft hiss as she winced, "-him get away..." She was reaching for her fallen pistol, just inches away from her finger tips. John's head jerked up to scan the room for the enemy, and spotted him quickly making his way toward the grounded gunship at the temple's entrance. With a jolt, John realized he had a dire choice. Jane, his one and only sister, was going to die painfully if she didn't receive immediate medical attention. She didn't have any of his cybernetics; no skin weave or enhanced regenerative properties. But Kai Leng was moments away from being out of their grasp, possibly for good, along with the data that could mean life or death for the galaxy. John stood on the precipice of that choice, and inhaled sharply.

Choices, even hard ones, were not uncommon for John Shepard. But rarely were they this personal. He'd had to choose between letting the council die or thousands of Alliance soldiers. He'd had to choose between hiding the salarian's sabotage or sending Mordin to his almost certain death in order to fix it. He'd even had to choose which of his squad would have to stay behind in the explosion back on Virmire. But nothing had truly ripped his heart out like this, his dying sister laying in his arms and the galaxy's final hope escaping to a near by gunship.

Jane, his baby sister Jane, was one of the few reasons he still had strength to get out of bed every morning. The hope that, after all of this, all the fighting and all the death, she might still be alive and breathing at the end. That she could go on to live a life full of hope and happiness. If he let her die here, then what was the point of it all? How was he expected to save the galaxy, when he couldn't even protect his own family?

But he knew this was bigger, greater than any one person. If he lost the data about the Catalyst, then the Reapers would surely win. Even after all the politics and work he'd gone through to secure the backing of the different races, he wasn't naïve enough to think they had a chance without it. And if the Reapers wiped out life as they knew it, Jane would die anyway and there'd be nothing he'd be able to do about it. Not only would his sister die, but everyone's sisters, mothers, children... His decision made, he looked up at Garrus.

"Keep her safe." John uttered, carefully depositing his sister in the turian's arms. Garrus glanced up at him in confusion as John moved to stand quickly. He grabbed the discarded pistol and dashed after the retreating black clad figure. "We're not done here, Kai Leng!" He shouted as he lifted the gun. Kai Leng disappeared into the open hatch, and the gunship took to the sky with a rush of hot air. John fired off three quick shots as he ran forward, but they bounced off the hull harmlessly. His arm fell back down to his side as he came to a stop out side the temple. In the end, it hadn't even mattered. His sister lay dying behind him, and before him the gunship spirited their data away. In his ear he could hear the screams of dying asari over his com unit, and in the distance two large Reapers touched down, probably killing hundreds in mere moments. He'd hesitated, and because of that he'd failed when it mattered most.

"Come in Cortez, we have a man down in critical condition, we need immediate evacuation and medical attention ASAP. I repeat-" Liara's words broke through the fog as they echoed through his com, and he turned to see her kneeling beside Garrus, her omni-tool open as she preformed a quick scan. He hurried back and returned to Jane's side. He might not be able to do anything about Kai Leng yet, but he could still try to save his sister.

"How's she doing?" He muttered to Liara as he took one of Jane's hands gingerly. She was noticeably paler now, and her breathing was more ragged and less even.

"Not well, I'm afraid. The rate of infection and blood loss from this sort of injury and internal damage is... Its not good, Shepard. If not for the medigel..." The asari trailed off as she fiddled with her omni-tool, conducting another scan. Garrus let out a strangled groan at her words, and leaned down to brush one mandible against Jane's cooling forehead. He pulled back as she coughed weakly, a few drops of blood dripping down her chin.

"Stay with us! Don't give up, please Jane!" Garrus croaked weakly as he pulled her closer, and John laid a hand on the other man's shoulder, giving the unrelenting armor a squeeze.

"Shepard!" He looked up to see Tali picking her way through the debris slowly with a pronounced limp, "Good, you're okay, where's Ka-" Her voice died as she spotted the blood. "What happened? Oh Keelah..." She gasped as she hurried over to kneel next to John. He glanced back to Jane, who hissed in pain as Liara applied more pressure to the wound. John gave her hand a light squeeze, and she smiled faintly, returning the gesture as best she could.

A moment later, her grip started to lessen, and her head began to lull into Garrus' chest. He brought a three fingered hand up to caress one cheek at her eyes lids began to sink. When they finally shut, the turian let loose a single heartbreaking, keening moan which was almost drowned out by the roar of the shuttle's engines as it landed near by.


	24. Chapter 24

AN: So probably no updates this weekend, as I'll be away visiting family. But I'll pick up as soon as I get back.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 24_

* * *

The medical monitors beeped rhythmically, almost calming as John sat down at the stool at the bedside, finally alone. Jane lay there, unmoving and pale, but alive. Not just alive, Chakwas had reminded him just minutes ago, but stabilized for the most part. Just over one full night cycle ago, they'd hurried her from the shuttle up to the med bay, and even the Doctor hadn't been sure she'd make it then. He and Garrus had both been pushed out during the surgery, only to stand and pace outside the door during the hours that followed. When the door had finally unlocked, Chakwas had stepped out to deliver the weighty truth that even though she'd flat lined once during the beginning, Jane was probably going to make it as long as they continued to combat the infections caused by ruptured organs. Garrus had immediately taken up the post at her bedside, and after a quick visit, John had decided to see to the numerous responsibilities he had waiting for him.

He'd stopped by various times to check on Jane during the night, and each time he laid eyes on her sickly pale skin and deep set eyes, he was painfully reminded how close he'd come to losing her. Just the day before they'd nearly been at each other's throats, and he'd been positive that she'd never want to speak to him in a friendly manner again. And now she'd almost died and he never would have gotten the chance to apologize, to help her move past the hurt and pain she'd endured the past few years since his original death. It was funny how even though he had actually died once before, he'd never really felt his own mortality until now. Could it really end so easily, even with all these words left unsaid between them?

He'd already promised her that they would talk after Thessia, and as he took Jane's hand in his, he swore to himself that he'd use that time to patch things up between them as best he could. He was not going to let either one of them die with bad air between them. At that thought, he realized he should probably also attempt to call their mother... She deserved to know that he cared, even that was all he got to tell her.

John jumped slightly as him omni-tool bleeped, alerting him to a message, and he realized how long he'd been sitting there. Looking out into the mess hall, he saw that Garrus was still slumped in a chair, poking at the food that John had tried to convince him to eat. The turian hadn't been happy about being forced out of the med bay, but some things were not negotiable and neglecting one's health to stand vigil was one of them. Not only that, but he was fairly certain that Garrus had at least twenty unread messages to attend to, many of them marked urgent if what EDI had said was to be believed (and it usually was). John then reflected that he was doing a fairly bad job at following his own advice. He'd manged to choke down a protein bar a few hours ago at Tali's request, but had also managed to stare at a monitor for at least an hour in the war room without really registering anything in the report he'd been trying to read. The call earlier with the asari councilor had been tough to get through as well, his empathy and guilt for her situation warring with his desire to dash downstairs and return to his pacing in the med bay.

With a sigh, John stood up with the intention of joining Garrus at the table, but he paused when he felt finger's tighten around his own every so slightly. His heart pounded in his chest painfully as he glanced down, almost afraid to look, worried that it might have been his imagination. Hope blossomed as he saw her eyes shift slightly, and they slowly started to crack open.

"..Mrrrmmuus-" She whispered, her speech slurred by the powerful drugs still in her system. The effort was almost too much, and her eyes started to roll backwards once more.

"Jane! Jane, I'm right here, you're going to be okay." He muttered frantically as he checked her monitors and insured that everything was okay.

"Mmmhh... John?" Her eyes opened again, and this time she seemed to be trying to fight off the drug induced haze.

"I'm right here."

"Wheres Garrus?" She muttered, her eyes beginning to focus on the room around her slowly. John fought to beat back the irrational swurge of hurt as she asked for the other man, with minimal success.

"...Do you want me to get him?" He finally asked quietly, and she closed her eyes again as she nodded sleepily. She was already starting to fall asleep again as he stood up a moment later, his body heavy with sad resignation. With a sigh, he pulled his fingers from Jane's light grip and brought them up to tap on the glass window sharply. Garrus' head snapped up, his eyes wide with surprise. John nodded for him to come in, and the turian knocked over his chair in his haste to return to her side.

As Garrus hurried through the med bay doors, John took a few steps back and watched as the other man sat gently on the side of the bed, taking one of Jane's hands in his. John left and made his way over to the mess hall slowly. He had no intention of listening to what was probably a sappy reunion, but he also had no intention of straying too far away just after she'd woken up. So he studiously ignored the events unfolding behind the windows as he plunged his head into the somewhat empty fridge. It always seemed somewhat empty, even right after restocking it. At the rate it was emptied, you'd think he ran a ship of teenaged boys, not grown men and women. With a small rueful grin, he decided there probably wasn't that much of a difference, when it came down to it. He'd curse biotics and their appetites if it weren't for the fact that he was just as guilty as the others.

Closing the fridge, he found it harder and harder to keep his eyes from the two in the other room. He was just curious, of course... He didn't really know anything about them as a couple, and it probably wouldn't hurt... He turned around slowly, as inconspicuously as he could, and watched. Jane appeared to be laughing about something, and though Garrus smiled back, it seemed forced. Almost as though he'd rather be sick then laugh at a time like this. John didn't blame him, honestly. Damn, now he wanted to know what they were saying... But he put his metaphorical foot down, deciding that spying was bad enough, no need to add eavesdropping to the list.

They were probably going to be all sappy, touchy, and romantic anyway. John nearly gagged trying not to think about it. On the outside they were 1 part cool and collected, 1 part fiery and hot headed, but behind doors he wouldn't be surprised if they cooed and simpered at each other like some kind of bad romance vid. Unbidden, the image of his sister and the turian dressed in 18th century high fashion and spewing lines from Pride and Prejudice came to mind, and his lips curled up in a small grin. Perhaps they weren't _that_ bad...

He returned his focus to the events in the other room. In all seriousness, the change in Garrus' demeanor was astounding. His expression was so soft, so vulnerable, that he was almost unrecognizable. Could this truly be the same turian that he'd found perched on the second story of that blood soaked apartment, surrounded by the corpses of his comrades, sniping merc after merc for days on end? And if he didn't know better, he'd almost guess that Jane's face probably mirrored Garrus', her usual cockiness or burning anger replaced by affection and warmth.

When faced with how happy they clearly made each other, how could he justify being upset with their relationship? Maybe it was just the after effect of the contentment he felt that Jane was going to be okay, but he felt... not happy about their relationship, but... Okay with it. Jane brought a hand up to cup Garrus' cheek, causing the turian to lean into the touch gently. Those two deserved happiness more than most, and he had no right to prevent it, even if his concern for Jane was just. It would take some getting used to, of course, but he owed it to both of them. And if their relationship was serious and they decided to take it further, well... He'd deal with that too. Family get togethers and holidays were going to be awkward for awhile, but if they could live with it then so could he.

They shared a kiss again, and John looked away with a frown. He hadn't even thought turians could kiss, and definitely didn't want to think about the mechanics of their physical relationship more than he had to. He was going to have to talk to Garrus about some guidelines at least. He was fairly sure the other man had broken at least a handful of rules in the bro code during the past few weeks... Did turians even have bro codes?

* * *

The first thing Garrus noticed as he barreled through the med bay doors was the faint flutter of Jane's eyelashes as her eyes opened slightly. John quickly excused himself as he neared the bed, sinking down as he rested on the side of it. Jane lay there, propped up by a few pillows and looking tired, but a good deal better than she had on the shuttle ride back.

"Hey." She smiled up at him with that half grin of hers, and he couldn't help but chuckle, relief flooded through him as a huge weight was lifted off his chest. All of a sudden, he could breathe again.

"Hey, yourself." He took her hand and brought it up to brush against his stiff lips. "How are you feeling?"

"A little bit like I was stabbed by a sword, but nothing a little rest and medi-gel won't fix."

"Tell that to Chakwas, I dare you. She was in here for hours trying to stitch you up again." He paused and looked down, suddenly unable to face her. "... I thought... We all thought... You almost-"

"Give me some credit, I'm a little harder to kill than that." Her grin melted when she realized he wasn't smiling back. He squeezed her hand lightly, and she squeezed back. The small reminder that she was, in fact, alive... He leaned down and kissed her lightly before drawing back slightly.

"I'm not sure what I would have done if you'd died down there, and I don't honestly want to think about it. I've lost too many good people that I cared about, I can't do it again. Not you."

"Garrus..." Jane's hand snaked up to cup his mandible, stroking the rough scar softly, and he leaned into the touch, closing his eyes with a quiet hum.

"I couldn't do this without you, Jane."

"Sure you could," Her smile was back, but softer, "Not as stylishly, of course." He chuckled at that as he gazed at her. There she was, back from the brink of death and outside the world as they knew it was ending, and yet they sat there, laughing and joking as though nothing in the galaxy mattered outside that room. And for that moment, it really didn't. As their eyes met, his laughter died and he felt his chest tighten. He'd never truly acknowledged how much she meant to him until he'd held her weakening body in his arms down there on Thessia. And though his feelings probably would have been obvious to her if she'd been a turian, she lacked the ability to pick up on the subtleties of turian physiology and subvocals. He'd realized then that if she had died, his greatest regret would have been losing her before he could communicate the depth of those feelings to her in a way she'd understand.

"Jane, this isn't exactly something turians do often, not in words at least..." He began awkwardly, and as her eyebrow raised quizzically, he mentally kicked himself for not preparing better. He should have done more research on human relationship traditions... "Damn it, I..." He forced himself to relax and focused on the message he wanted relay, "Jane, the worst part of the galaxy going to hell is the possibility that each moment together might be out last." Well, that wasn't exactly perfect, but she smiled anyway, and seemed to understand what he meant.

"Well, here I am. Exactly where I want to be." She took a breath before continuing, her voice calm and low, "I love you, Garrus Vakarian."

He'd heard the saying 'takes your breath away' before, but never really understood it until then. "Wow. Hmm- I... No amount of research can prepare you for that." He finished lamely, but was rewarded with the melody of her laughter. She sat forward, wincing slightly with the effort, and kissed him again quickly before falling back into her pillows. She brought a hand up to clutch her bandage wrapped side, and Garrus narrowed his eyes at her. "Be careful. I'm probably going to be the one who gets chewed out by Chakwas or your brother if you reopen the wound." She seemed to be contemplating her response, but was cut off by a soft beeping from one of the machines. They looked up to see a small one connected to her IV with a flashing green light.

"Ah, that must be my next dosage of pain killers... I'm probably going to be a drooling pile of drug induced goo in a minute here, probably not a moment too soon..." Her face betrayed her pain as she winced again and she wiggled around, trying to get comfy.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure you're going to stop being an excuse to ignore my incoming messages pretty soon here. Let's hope the Primarch isn't too upset with me for ignoring his." Garrus gave her hand another squeeze before letting go and standing up. She yawned and smiled again.

"Ah, look at you, hot shot. Ignoring the Primarch of Palaven to spend time with your girlfriend..." He leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead gently before starting toward the door. "What happened to Kai Leng?" She asked suddenly, and he turned around to see her eyelids already startling to close.

"He... got away. But we think we might have an idea of his direction. It's still playing out, but we'll get him, I promise." She nodded again before her eyes shut. Oh yes, they'd catch the bastard. And between him and John, there was going to be hell to pay.


	25. Chapter 25

AN: Okay, so, apologies... Sorry this was so late, and sorry its so short... Also, sorry for any typos, please point them out if you come across them. They doubled my hours at work the past week or two, and its been difficult to find time to write when I'm not exhausted. We're coming close to the end though, so no worries about me being able to finish it :)

Edit: A reader noticed a small plot inconsistency, which I fixed. Had some issues digging the Horizon mission up from memory, seeing as how I haven't finished my second play through yet. Thanks Corrie, I was going to send you a PM with my thanks, but since you reviewed anonymously, this will have to do :)

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 25_

* * *

As Garrus stepped out of the med bay, he immediately noticed John as he stood and made his way toward him. Given the distinct possibility of another confrontation with the unusually emotional Commander, Garrus nervously turned to face John with a straight back and weary eye. However, as he came to a stop before him and turned slightly to gaze sedately at his sister through the still open doors, Garrus decided that John was most likely not about to pick a fight.

"Garrus." His voice was resigned and strained, not all together unexpected after the last 24 hours. His eyes were deep set and had the dark bags that Garrus had come to associate with lack of sleep in humans.

"Shepard." Garrus nodded, and was about to continue on toward the main battery when John's hand shot out to hover just between them. It was open in the universal gesture of greeting or peace, depending on the situation, which confused the turian slightly. He knew it would be rude not to return the hand shake, but he honestly had no idea what it was for at this point.

"I've been a total prat, and I'm sorry." John stated simply, his hand still out, but his eyes had dropped to watch the ground between them. "I genuinely want you and Jane to be happy, and if you're both happiest when you're together then you both have my blessing. For whatever its worth." As understanding hit Garrus over the head like a brick, he grinned and took John's hand in a firm grip.

"Thanks, it means a lot to both of us, whether or not Jane is willing to admit it right now." That brought a rueful smile to John's face.

"I was just being selfish and petty. Neither of you deserved the shit I flung at you, and Jane was right. I was horribly hypocritical."

"Shepard, after everything you've done and been through, I think you deserve to be a little selfish every now and then..." Garrus quipped as they released their hands and relaxed.

"Maybe..." John sighed and glanced back at Jane, "But it didn't give me the right to be an ass to those I care about." He turned back to Garrus and his face grew serious again. "So, are we cool?"

"Definitely. You might want to talk to Jane when she wakes up, however." Garrus was interrupted at John's omni-tool beeped suddenly, and their eyes both snapped to the flashing device. John pulled up the message, skimmed through it, and his eyes grew cold.

"Traynor thinks she might have found him. I'm going to head up stairs and see what I can learn. Want to join me?" Garrus gave the question some thought, and nodded.

"Sure thing, Shepard. Go on ahead, I'll be right behind you." John turned and made for the elevator, and Garrus entered the med bay once more. He stopped by Jane's bedside and leaned over to kiss her forehead softly. She remained asleep, and so he tried not to disrupt her as his face hovered a inch or two above her's. "I love you, Jane Shepard." He whispered as quietly as he could, "I'll be back soon."

* * *

Jane sat and fiddled with one of the many rifle mods laid out on the work station in the main battery. After waking in the med bay some time before, she'd quickly untangled herself from the various wires and tubes, and dressed her self before making her escape. After snooping around for awhile, trying to find Garrus or her brother without being caught out of bed by Chakwas, she'd eventually learned that the Normandy was in orbit around Horizon, home of the safe house known as Sanctuary. John and a small team, including Garrus, were currently on the ground, raiding the station in order to find Kai Leng and his stolen data, leaving Jane on the Normandy to stew in her own frustration. When she'd asked EDI to patch her through to them, the AI had responded that contacting the ground team had been difficult so far due to a signal scrambler, and they hadn't heard from them in about 30 minutes. So, Jane had retreated to the main battery to wait, knowing that she'd probably be dragged back to the med bay (kicking and screaming, no doubt) sooner rather then later.

And as expected, almost 10 minutes passed before the doors had opened to reveal a relieved and tired looking Dr. Chakwas. She'd insisted that Jane return with her, but it took a surprising lack of effort to talk her down. With a weary sigh, the doctor had asked that she at least be allowed to scan her in order to insure she wasn't in any danger at least. A moment and a much more relieved sigh later, Chakwas stood and reported that she was healing very well, and that so long as she made no sudden or twisting movements of her abdominal area, she should be okay. With muttered, half true promises that she'd report back to the med bay if she experienced any sharp pains, Jane was left alone to await the ground team's return.

Almost an hour later, the door opened again, and Jane turned around as quickly as she dared to see Garrus as he stumbled through. His eyes widened as they fell on her.

"What are you doing up? You should be in bed still." She stood and hurried over to pull him into a hug which he returned gingerly, careful of her injury. They stayed like that for a moment, and though they'd held each other dozens of times before this, there was something different now. Something about the way he clung to her that spoke of desperation.

"Doc says I'm healing well enough. Wasn't happy about me refusing to stick to the med bay, but I can be stubborn sometimes." She pulled away and led him over to the crate-turned-chair by the work station, forcing him to sit. It didn't take much, and he sank down onto it with a clatter of armor and limbs. "How'd it go?" He was silent for a moment, his eyes dark and brooding. "That bad, huh?"

"We didn't get him... But Miranda got a tracking bug on him, so we're following him back to the Cerberus headquarters." He started after a moment, and Jane moved to stand between his knees, laying a gentle kiss upon his brow. "That place... It was some kind of nightmare. Turns out it was a trap, Cerberus was luring people in with a promise of safety only to turn around and use them in experiments." She drew back slightly and started undoing the buckles of his dirty and bloodied armor. She wasn't always the best at being sensitive to others, but at the very least she could help make him more comfortable.

"I wish I could say that surprised me..." She peeled the pieces away, one by one, laying them on the ground carefully.

"You don't even know the half of it. This was easily 10 times worse than any of the Cerberus bases John raided back on the SR1... They turned them into husks... Reapers showed up, of course, and it was just chaos from that point forward." He looked away, and Jane used the moment to remove the last few pieces of his armor. His eyes found hers, and bore into them with intensity enough to freeze her in place. "I'm going to kill him. He almost- you... I swear to you, Jane, I'm going to put a bullet between his eyes before this is through."

"That's assuming I don't get to him first." She grinned, and her fingers started carefully digging into the softer parts of his body, rubbing away the stress and tension. He gave a small groan of appreciation.

"You know John's not going to let you off the ship till you're fully healed." Garrus grinned back, but his eyes weren't really in it.

"Hmph. We'll see." Jane snorted noncommittally and kneeled down to start peeling the under suit from his upper body slowly. Grabbing up one of Garrus' rough towels, she began rubbing down his plates and he started to hum happily, despite his obvious weariness.

"You don't have to do that, you know. You shouldn't be straining yourself."

"I'm not straining myself, and I'm just happy there's something I can do to help. Nothing like being injured and stuck on a ship to make a person feel useless." He snaked an arm around her waist, pulling her close to him carefully.

"You're never useless." Garrus leaned forward to nuzzle her cheek and she smiled softly. His grip tightened on her slightly, and she hissed in pain suddenly. He released her, his eyes wide with worry.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just be careful." She murmured, and he lifted on hand to hold her side lightly. When she didn't draw back, he relaxed. Her own hands returned to caressing his tougher hide. Her fingers began to trail lower, toward his now bared waist, though he barely noticed. His eyes had a far away look, perhaps reliving the day's mission and the horrors, or perhaps some other painful memory. Determined to distract him as best she could, Jane's fingers moved in small circles as they moved down, using just enough force to grab his attention again. He began to hum again, but this time it was laced with something else, something deeper that made her insides twist with anticipation. Her hands grew more adventurous, but stopped when he grabbed her wrists suddenly.

"Jane, if you don't stop, I won't be able to." Garrus warned, and as she felt their breaths mingle she realized that he was leaning towards her, his eyes intent on hers.

"Maybe I don't want to stop." She whispered, the corner of her lips curling smugly. He blinked and stood, looking down at her. "Garrus, I'm fine. Seriously."

"You almost died, Jane."

"Well, maybe I need this." She shot back, her eyes narrowing as she got to her feet, "And I suspect you do, too." He glanced away, and she added "I'll be fine, as long as you're careful." He looked back at her, his decision clearly made as he wrapped his arm around her again with a smile.

"That, I can do." She lost her shirt soon after, and as promised, he was gentle with her. More gentle then she thought possible from a turian. Usually this wasn't the sort of thing that she found to be a turn on, but there was something undeniably tender about the way he held her and turned her to putty in his hands.

They shared those few hours of peace holding each other close, the sudden reality that they were constantly at death's door hanging over them. His movements, though carefully calculated to cause her the least amount of pain possible, were laced with a certain desperation that she suspected was felt through out the entire ship as they made the journey to the Cerberus headquarters. No doubt Tali was paying John a visit, along with a handful of other private moments.

They moved together, taking their time and enjoying what might be some of their final moments together. Their eyes locked as they both found their release, secured in each other's embrace and refusing to let go for fear that they wouldn't get another chance. EDI announced John's orders for Garrus to meet him in the war room in 30 minutes as they approached the base, and that outside the attack force was already massing. But for now, Jane found her solace wrapped in the arms of her turian, exchanging sweet nothings and promises both of them feared would never be able to be fulfilled.


	26. Chapter 26

.

**Sister Complex**

_Chapter 26_

* * *

Jane approached the cockpit with some trepidation. She knew second hand that John had spent a good amount of time at her bed side, but that didn't mean things where square between them just yet. Sure, he had been a bit of an ass regarding the relationship issue, but she'd been necessarily rude, insubordinate, and immature as a result, and she felt a good deal of guilt and embarrassment still. Sure, they'd had spats before as kids, but they'd usually ended with making up and/or hugs eventually. The air of a raw dispute unresolved still floated between them, and it did more than make her uncomfortable. But she soldiered on, none the less.

As she neared, she spotted Garrus leaning in the door way, clearly listening to the events in the cockpit without appearing to pay attention. He nodded to her with a pleased flick of a mandible, and she stopped next to him to watch the three figures before her.

"-I am ready." Stated the cool voice of the Normandy's AI as she shifted slightly, her voice more even and calculated than usual. She almost seemed nervous, if that was even possible.

"Wait, wha- What?" Joker stuttered and he spun around to face her, "Are you crazy? You can't go to Cerberus Headquarters! They could have a virus, or a kill switch, or a-"

"I will be fine, Jeff." She snapped curtly, and Jane marveled at her evolving emotional array.

"Head to the shuttle, EDI." John dismissed the conversation, and the AI turned to leave after a single glance at the disgruntled pilot. Jane stopped listening to the cockpit's conversation as EDI passed her, making her way toward the elevator, and Jane turned a weary eye on Garrus. What with technical knowledge of Garrus, Tali, and herself, EDI hadn't been taken on that many critical ground missions, and Jane wasn't sure how she felt knowing that the relatively inexperienced AI was going to be the one watching Garrus' back. But if nothing else, her near brush with death had instilled how stupid this conflict with her brother was, and if she was intent on patching things up with him then she was going to stop doubting his command and decisions. She was a soldier, and she should act like one regardless of familial ties with the ship's CO. After a moment, she returned her attention to John's words floating in from the cockpit.

"I know it hurts, not being able to go with her."

"Yeah, it sucks. Thanks for bringing that up." Jokers pain and spit filled words struck something similar in her, but though she resented being left on the ship again, she'd made up her mind and she was going to be professional. Even if it rankled. John turned to leave, and nodded his welcome as he noticed her standing there. They stood there in awkward silence for a moment, and though it felt like an hour passed before he spoke, it must have been only seconds.

"Jane," He cleared his throat, coughing into a gloved fist, "Its good to see you up and about again."

"Thanks...I-" Her words were strangled as he pulled her into a tight hug, and she found herself painful pressed up against his armored torso. "Careful, careful! My side!" She felt a small chuckle bubble up, and he loosened his grip on her slightly, allowing her to wrap her arms around his neck. He pulled away, careful of her injury this time, and took a step back.

"I know you're going to be upset about having to stay behind, but-"

"I understand, John." His eyes shot open with surprise, as did Garrus' from where he standing to the side. "I don't _like_ it, but I understand. Just make sure you get Kai Leng for me, and I'll focus on healing up before I'm needed next. Commander." She saluted him with a smile, albeit a somewhat tight and forced one. John composed himself rather quickly, and returned her salute before turning toward elevator.

"Hey, Shepard." They all turned toward Joker, who's attention was still on the ship's controls. "Keep her safe." They all knew who he was talking about.

"Same to you."

As John left, Garrus placed a single hand on Jane's shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze and he pressed his hard lips against her cheek briefly before following John.

* * *

"_That was for Jane, you son of a bitch._" John spat as the assassin's body crumpled to the floor, and Garrus returned his rifle to it's place on his back as he slowly approached. Blood pooled around the twitching soon-to-be corpse, and it seemed fitting to see him laying there, similarly wounded as his former victims. The blade wound in Kai Leng's side oozed oily black-red blood, and John's lips curled in an uncharacteristic sneer. "Good riddance."

Kai Leng's hand twitched toward his fallen, shattered sword hilt, and Garrus reacted instinctively. He whipped out his pistol and he couldn't stop the flood of satisfaction as he pulled the trigger just once, depositing an armor piercing round right between Kai Leng's eyes. He let out the breath he'd been holding, and noticed as John did the same. Not for the first time, Garrus' mind drifted back to the episode, months ago, on the Citadel, where he had stared down John and Sidonis through his scope. Even though Garrus knew why the situations were different, revenge for Jane's near death was sweet. He just had to remember that revenge was simply icing on the cake that was taking down a very dangerous enemy in the fight against the Reapers. Killing Sidonis would have been something akin to kicking a sick or crippled varren.

John turned and walked away from body as the prothean VI reappeared and began to give suggestions. Not that it really mattered at this point. They knew what they needed, and they knew where it was. It was now just a matter of getting there. As the ground team turned to leave, John opened a com channel with the Normandy.

"Joker, make sure the shuttle is prepped, we're ready for extraction." John barked as they left the destroyed remnants of the Illusive Man's control room.

"It's already on its way, John." As Jane's voice filtered through their com units, John glanced down at his omni-tool, most likely to insure he had contacted the right frequency.

"Jane? What are you doing in the cock pit?"

"She been sitting up here being a pain in my ass since you guys left." Joker snapped, Jane's clear laughter present in the background.

"Hey now, I've been plenty useful. John, did you really think I was going to sit on my hands or twiddle my thumbs when you guys were down there being goddamn heroes?" John sighed in defeat.

"No, I suppose not." Came his weary resignation as the ground team began their journey backtracking through the base toward the nearest shuttle hanger.

"I actually managed to hack into the Cerberus database while you guys were fighting your way through. I wasn't able to access any of the stolen data, it seemed to be in a separate, more secure system, but I was able to extract some interesting video feeds before they were scrubbed." Jane's voice continued, now laced with concentration.

"Anything important?"

"Not necessarily, but most of it is interesting at the very least. Want me to send a copy of them to your omni-tool?"

"What sort of files? What are they about?"

"Most of it is about the Illusive Man, Kai Leng, and EDI. But some of it is about the Lazarus Project..." There was an awkward pause, and Garrus wondered exactly how much Jane knew about her brother's resurrection. He had explained a small amount of it, but even he only knew so much.

"...Did you look through those files already, Jane?" John asked stiffly after a moment. They finally arrived in the shuttle hanger, and watched as Cortez quickly landed before them.

Another pause. "...Yes. John, I-"

"I see." They piled into the waiting shuttle, each finding a seat. "Send them to me, I'll look through them when I get a chance."

"Will do." With that, John closed the com channel and leaned back in his seat. Garrus could see the strain in the way the Commander sat, but there was a vast difference between how he had held himself before the mission. Regardless of the horrors that probably awaited them when they arrived at Earth, this had been a successful mission, done well. There was a small beep as the files arrived on John's omni-tool, but he made no move to open them as he stared down at the device on his wrist.

"Nervous about what you might find?" Garrus wondered allowed, and John glanced at him before returning to watching his unmoving omni-tool.

"Somewhat. I'm still me, I doubt I'd have been able to turn against Cerberus other wise... I don't remember anything. Maybe they really just fixed me, or maybe I'm just a high tech VI that _thinks_ it's Commander Shepard. Almost think I'm better off not knowing." He looked down at this feet and closed his eyes, the lines of his face becoming pronounced as he clenched them shut. "But I dunno, I-"

"It'd be surprising if it didn't mess you up... a little. But I wouldn't worry about it. You're still the same John Shepard I've followed into hell numerous times, and I trust you, for what its worth, whether you're human or robot or something in between." That got a small smile out of him.

"Thanks, Garrus."

"Any time.


End file.
